Bright caterpillar ID please!

[Africa]

This wet morning this caterpillar narrowly avoided being squashed on the footpath! I took it home and took a few pictures. I thougth it would be a hawkmoth, but I couldn't ID it.


Any ideas?

It has now been released in a safer place

[squishy]

i cant find any hawkmoths that look like that

no idea

[poschiavanus]

It's a sawfly, presumably a cimbicid on size grounds. Might have a more detailed look later.

[squishy]

looks possible

[Gerel]

Large alder sawfly, Cimbex connatus, I believe.

Quite a rarity if it is.

[Pudding4brains]

Yes, should be a Cimbicidae - there was a very similar, and equally confusing one on waarneming.nl the other day. If it weren't for the double rows of black dots on the side I would have guessed this one to be Cimbex femoratus, but as it is ... no idea really ...

[Pudding4brains]

Originally Posted by Gerel

Large alder sawfly, Cimbex connatus, I believe.

That was suggested too on the dutch thread linked above, but the only image I could find of the larvae of these (on HymIS) is bright yellow and only has a single row of black dots??? At the time reason for us to discard the idea. Are they that variable? And if so, isn't femoratus equally variable? I've seen images of yellowish larvae dubbed "C. femoratus", but on sites that I wouldn't grant high trustworthyness. But even these only had a single row of black dots ...

No comprhensive overview of Cimbicidae larvae to be found on the internet alas
Arp

[Gerel]

The only internet source I can find is a PDF not a webpage so you have to download it and open with Acrobat or similar.

If you Google "Cimbex connatus" the fifth result on the first page should be "Recording some easily-identified Sawfly larva" the very last picture is a dead ringer for your chap.

Steve

[Pudding4brains]

Hi Steve,

Originally Posted by Gerel

"Recording some easily-identified Sawfly larva" the very last picture is a dead ringer for your chap.

That is well silly - of course I have had that PDF for the longest time (or is this a new version?)

It also clearly states that: "the additional row of black spots is diagnostic"

I'd best check with the HymIS-guys what's up with their image than (or their take on the matter). Usually a quite reliable and precise bunch of folks that bunch

Thanks for pointing out the obvious though

Arp

P.S. Ahw yes: To make things easier Recording some easily-identified sawfly larvae (PDF) (on non-UK googles it doesn't come up quite so prominently )

[Dogghound]

It is a Cimbex sp but as far as im aware they are extremely hard to ID as larvae as they share alot of common characteristics.