Common Pine Sawfly - Diprion pini

The larvae of the sawfly Diprion pini are a very pale lemon (almost off white) with rows of dark spots – they may infest various species of pine.

Where pine trees are present.

The adult sawflies emerge in May or June from cocoons which have overwintered in the upper soil and litter layers of the forest floor. There may be a second hatch in July and August.

In spring, egg clusters of D. pini can be detected on the previous year's needles; during mid-summer, eggs may eventually also be detected on needles of the current year. Eggs are laid in rows on adjacent needles and are covered by a pale-yellow spumous coating.

Although widespread it is only occasionally recorded in Britain. It is an adventive species, having years of super-abundance at a site followed by years when it is hard to find.

Rare or under recorded in Leicestershire and Rutland

https://www.sawflies.org.uk/diprion-pini/