Identification, Images, & Information
For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada
Photo#194214
Macrophya

Macrophya
Marlton, Burlington County, New Jersey, USA
June 5, 2008
Size: Maybe around 25 mm?
Size is a bit of a rough estimate. These white dusty larvae were found on our elderberry shrub. I suspect the sawfly Tenthredo grandis but welcome any other opinions.

Images of this individual: tag all
Macrophya Macrophya

Moved
Moved from Macrophya.

Moved
Moved from Images that Dr. Smith was unable to place to subfamily [tmp.]. Moved to be with the other "Possibly Macrophya sp." in the guide.

 
Perhaps
Should we create a non-taxon "possibly Macrophya"? It makes more sense to me.

 
How about
the "Probably Macrophya"?

 
Sounds good
Better than what we have right now.

 
I agree
sounds good.

Moved

Tenthredinidae
Possibly Macrophya sp. Several species of this genus feed on elderberry but the larvae cannot be identified. There is no single species I know that can be called "the elderberry sawfly". Tenthredo grandis feeds on Chelone.

check out Tenthredo grandis
There's no Guide page for it, but its common name is the elderberry sawfly. (There's no Guide page for 113 other Tenthredo spp. either.) I'd be checking it out myself but my Internet connection is going haywire.

Between your image and the identical sawfly-on-elderberry in this ID request,

the elderberry sawfly really deserves a look, and if its range matches and the larvae look similar, there's a case for a new Guide page.

I desperately wish I could look it up myself, but my computer's just not cooperating tonight. Dangit.

 
Thanks
Yes I know that is why my images are titled "Tenthredo grandis ????", the problem is I can't find any description of the larva for Tenthredo grandis.

 
apparently not T. grandis
I found some images of T. grandis larvae, on the Guide and via Google Images, and they are very dark and strongly patterned:



Sigh, still don't know what this one is!

Moved