The genus Xyela contains several species that feed as larvae on the developing 
pollen of the male strobili of various species of pines and one species forms shoot 
galls on several species of pines. The adults are often found feeding on pollen of 
catkins of willow, alder, and other trees in flower during the adult flight period, and 
occasionally on the pollen of pines. Only 17 species are known in North America, 
of which 7 are found in eastern pine forests. X. bakeri Konow, reared or collected 
from longleaf, slash, jack, Virginia, and shortleaf pines, is known to occur from 
Quebec to Florida, westward to British Columbia, and California. X. minor Nor- 
ton, whose known hosts include Virginia, slash, loblolly, and longleaf pines, 
ranges from Quebec to Florida, westward to British Columbia, and California. X. 
obscura (Strobl), reared or collected from Virginia, -jack, slash, longleaf, and 
loblolly pines, is known from Newfoundland to Florida westward to California, 
Northwest Territories, British Columbia. X. dodgei Greenbaum, collected beneath 
sand pine, is known only from Cedar Key, Fla. X. alpigena (Strobl), whose known 
hosts are white pines, ranges from Quebec, Maine, to Maryland, westward to Utah, 
New Mexico. X. styrax Burdick, collected from Virginia pine is known from New 
York, Maryland, Virginia, and Georgia. X. gallicaulis Smith, the pine shoot gall 
sawfly, is collected and reared from spindle-shaped galls on new shoots of loblolly, 
shortleaf, and slash pines in Virginia and Georgia (fig. 176). Adults emerge in 
December and oviposit presumably in the dormant buds of host trees. Egg hatch 1s 
timed with bud elongation, and the larvae form a gall. Full-grown larvae drop to the 
soil where prepupae form cocoons. Adults emerge 19 months later. The cur- 
culionid, Conotrachelus caroliniensis Schoof, feeds externally on sawfly galls, 
which damages weakened shoots and causes them to break in the wind. Xyelid 
sawflies occurring on slash and longleaf pines in Florida are discussed in the 
literature (355, 547). 
Pleroneura brunneicornis Rohwer is recorded from balsam and white firs from 
eastern Canada and from Maine and New York to Minnesota (//03). Mature larvae 
are white, measuring 4 to 7 mm long. The thoracic legs are weakly developed and 
prolegs are reduced to slight swellings. In New Brunswick, Canada, adults fly 
during late May. Eggs are deposited within tightly packed needle clusters on 
expanding buds, and larvae feed in tunnels excavated in the center of new shoots. 
Mined shoots die and turn reddish brown, an effect similar to that caused by late 
frost. Mature larvae drop to the ground and overwinter in thin, oval cocoons spun 
within an earthen cell. There is one generation per year (/260). 
Several species of Megaxyela have been observed feeding as larvae on hickory 
and walnut, and M. langstoni Ross has been reared from pecan. Macroxyela 
ferruginea (Say) has been recorded as feeding on elm. 
Family Pamphiliidae 
Webspinning Sawflies 
The family Pamphiliidae is represented in North America by 4 genera and 72 or 
more species, of which more than half occur in eastern America. The adults are 
moderately large with long, many-segmented antennae. The abdomen is flattened 
and has sharp lateral margins; the ovipositor of the female is short. Larvae have the 
venter flattened and are about 15 to 25 mm long. The thoracic legs are well 
developed, abdominal legs are absent, and the last abdominal segment bears a pair 
of three-segmented subanal appendages. The larvae of certain species are gregari- 
ous and feed together in nests that they prepare by webbing together leaves of their 
hosts. Others roll the edges of leaves or spin silken tubes in which to live (845). 
The pine false webworm, Acantholyda erythrocephala (L.), an introduced 
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