- 3 



EUROPEAN APPLE SAWFLY - ITS LIFE HISTORY AND CONTROL 



Gary L. 

 Department of 



Jensen 

 Entomology 



One of our Regional Fruit Specialists reports that scars from 

 European sawfly larvae feeding are the most prevalent insect in- 

 jury on the Massachusetts apple crop. 



Life Cycle and Description 



Adult sawflies are about 1/4 inch long, dark brown or 

 dorsally (on top) and yellow-brown ventrally (underneath), 

 heads and antennae are yellow, while the eyes are black. 



black 

 Their 



The sawflies overwinter as full-grown larvae encased in small 

 parchment-like cocoons in the upper 2 or 3 inches of soil under in- 

 fested apple trees. In the spring, the larvae change to pupae and 

 then to adults. Adults emerge from the soil at about the time the 

 early apples bloom. Thus, early apple cultivars are the most ser- 

 iously damaged by this insect. 



Ad 

 weeks . 

 the bio 

 the egg 

 the sur 

 calyx e 

 They em 

 a new a 

 charact 

 on the 

 core, t 

 soon le 

 eral fr 

 "June d 

 the ski 

 scarred 

 packing 

 more se 



ul ts are 

 The fern 

 ssom end 

 s hatch 

 face of 

 nd. As 

 erge fro 

 pple and 

 eristic 

 surface 

 he 1 arva 

 ave to e 

 ui ts . A 

 rop" whi 

 n remain 

 by the 

 operati 

 rious da 



acti 

 al es 



of n 

 and t 

 the a 

 the 1 

 m the 



tunn 

 depos 

 of th 

 e wor 

 nter 

 11 fr 

 le th 



on t 

 feedi 

 ons b 

 mage 



ve 1 n 

 lay 

 ewly 

 he ti 

 pple 

 arvae 

 i r tu 

 el di 

 it of 

 e you 

 k bac 

 other 

 ui ts 

 ose 

 he tr 

 ng , t 

 ut ar 

 that 



the 

 ne or 

 devel 

 ny 1 ar 

 skins, 



matur 

 nnel a 

 rectly 



reddi 

 ng dev 

 k towa 



appl e 

 that a 

 nly tu 

 ee unt 

 hat at 

 e not 

 resul t 



rchar 

 two 

 ping 

 vae s 



ofte 

 e, th 

 nd en 



towa 

 sh-br 

 el opi 

 rd th 

 s. 

 re tu 

 nnel e 

 il ha 

 tract 

 neces 

 ed ea 



d for a 

 val , sh 

 appl es . 

 tart to 

 n i n a 

 ey Chan 

 ter the 

 rd the 

 own fra 

 ng appl 

 e surfa 

 ne larv 

 nnel ed 

 d under 

 rvest . 



attent 

 s a r i 1 y 

 r 1 i e r i 



pen 



i ny CO 



In a 



tunne 

 spiral 

 ge the 



si de 

 core . 

 ss is 

 es. A 

 ce of 

 a may 

 to the 

 neath 



It is 

 ion d u 

 an i nd 

 n the 



d of one 

 lorless e 



week to 

 1 just be 



starti ng 

 i r feedi n 

 of the ap 



At this 

 readily n 

 fter reac 

 the fruit 

 thus i n j u 



core fal 

 the surfa 



these ap 

 ring grad 

 i c a t i n o 

 season . 



to two 

 ggs at 

 10 days, 

 neath 



at the 

 g habits 

 pi e or 

 stage, a 

 1 i c e d 

 hing the 



and 

 re sev- 

 1 during 

 ce of 

 pies, 

 i n g and 

 f the 



The young sawfly larvae, which are sometimes confused with 

 the larvae of the codling moth, are white with black heads which 

 later become yellow. They are never pinkish in color as are cod- 



