''Tenthredo moniliata'' is a sawfly species belonging to the family Tenthredinidae (common sawflies).

Distribution and habitat

These sawflies are present in most of European countries and in the eastern

Palearctic realm The Palearctic or Palaearctic is the largest of the eight biogeographic realms of the Earth. It stretches across all of Eurasia north of the foothills of the Himalayas, and North Africa. The realm consists of several bioregions: the Euro-Sibe ...

.Fauna europaea
/ref> They usually occurs in humid areas (especially fens, swamps and ponds).

Description

''Tenthredo monilita'' can reach a length of about . These sawflies are quite variable. They usually have a black head, with yellow mouth parts. The antennae are entirely black. On the front of the thorax there is a small yellow stripe. On each side of the 1st tergite there is a white spot. The 3rd, 4th and 5th segments of the abdomen are reddish, while the apical segments are black. The legs are mostly brown, with black femurs. Wings are mostly transparent, with brown veins. In males the abdomen is more reddish.Artsdatabanken
/ref>

Biology

The adults can be encountered from May through July feeding on nectar and pollen of flowers. Main host plant is menyanthes ('' Menyanthes trifoliata''), but host plants also include buttercups (''

Ranunculus ''Ranunculus'' is a large genus of about almost 1700 to more than 1800 species of flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae. Members of the genus are known as buttercups, spearworts and water crowfoots. The genus is distributed in Europe ...

'' species), oregano ('' Origanum vulgare'') and bush cinquefoil ('' Dasiphora fruticosa'').

References

Tenthredinidae Insects described in 1817 {{sawfly-stub