Sawfly

[Sarah]

Any one of numerous species of hymenopterous insects belongingto the family Tenthredinidæ. The female usually has an ovipositorcontaining a pair of sawlike organs with which she makes incisions inthe leaves or stems of plants in which to lay the eggs. The larværesemble those of Lepidoptera.

[Michiko]

Sawflies are the insects of the suborder Symphyta within the order Hymenoptera, alongside ants, bees, and wasps. The common name comes from the saw-like appearance of the ovipositor, which the females use to cut into the plants where they lay their eggs. The name is associated especially with the Tenthredinoidea, by far the largest superfamily in the suborder, with about 7,000 known species; in the entire suborder, there are 8,000 described species in more than 800 genera. Symphyta is paraphyletic, consisting of several basal groups within the order Hymenoptera, each one rooted inside the previous group, ending with the Apocrita which are not sawflies.