Bug FAQBramble Sawfly
Arge cyanocrocea · Order: Hymenoptera · Family: Argidae
Also called: Broad-barred Fusehorn
Source: Wikipedia
Adults are tiny, only about 7 to 8 mm long. They have a black head and thorax, a yellow-orange abdomen, and wings marked with a wide dark band and a gray tip. You’ll see them from May to July, feeding on flower nectar and on the leaves of brambles.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
The head and thorax are black, the abdomen is yellow-orange, and the wings have a broad dark band with a gray tip.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults grow to about 7 to 8 mm (0.28 to 0.31 in) long.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
They are seen from May to July on the flowers of Apiaceae, Euphorbiaceae and Asteraceae plants. The larvae feed on the leaves of brambles such as blackberry, raspberry and great burnet.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Adults sip pollen and nectar from various Apiaceae, Euphorbiaceae and Asteraceae flowers. Larvae chew the leaves of brambles, especially blackberry and raspberry, and also great burnet.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Larvae look like caterpillars but have five pairs of prolegs instead of four. Adults are active from May through July.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
They are encountered from May to July.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
They occur across most of Europe, the Caucasus, Asia Minor and Japan.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
It resembles Arge pagana, which can be told apart by its black wings.
Source: Wikipedia
More photos
Questions people ask
What plants do they damage?
The larvae feed on the leaves of brambles like blackberry and raspberry, causing damage to those garden plants.
Source: Wikipedia
How can I tell them apart from similar sawflies?
Arge cyanocrocea has a gray-tipped wing with a dark band, while the similar Arge pagana has black wings.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Argidae)
Rose SawflyArge ochropusDamages trees, gardens or crops
Large Rose SawflyArge paganaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Azalea Argid SawflyArge similis
Elm Zigzag SawflyAproceros leucopodaDamages trees, gardens or crops
Cibdela janthinaCibdela janthina
Zenarge turneriZenarge turneriDamages trees, gardens or cropsSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arge_cyanocrocea
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-24 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.