Nettle Root Weevil vs Yellow-shouldered Slug Sawfly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Nettle Root Weevil Yellow-shouldered Slug Sawfly
Scientific Name Phyllobius virideaeris Arge berberidis
Order Coleoptera Hymenoptera
Family Curculionidae Argidae
Size 3-5 mm 7-9 mm (adult)
Habitat Hedgerows Gardens
Diet Herbivores Herbivores
Regions Europe Europe
Conservation Least Concern Not Evaluated

Nettle Root Weevil

A bright green-scaled weevil found on nettles and other vegetation in spring. Extremely common but the scales wear off with age revealing black cuticle. Adults chew leaf edges.

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Did You Know?

Fresh specimens are brilliant metallic green, but old worn individuals look like completely different black beetles.

Yellow-shouldered Slug Sawfly

A sawfly pest of barberry and mahonia shrubs, skeletonizing leaves in gardens. Larvae are slug-like and pale green with a dark head.

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Did You Know?

Two generations per year can completely strip barberry hedges of their foliage by late summer.