Pergidae of the World

An online catalogue of the sawfly family Pergidae (Symphyta).

Distribution

The Pergidae show a Gondwanan distribution, with the majority of species occurring in South America and Australia, but no species known from Africa. They are the dominant family in Australia and, with the Tenthredinidae and Argidae, are one of the major families in the Neotropics.

In the Australasian Region, they occur in Australia (including Tasmania) and the islands of New Guinea and New Britain. The most northeastern records are Sulawesi and Indonesia with two species of Cladomacra described from Sulawesi. Only one introduced species (Phylacteophaga froggatti) occurs in New Zealand and New Caledonia but none are native to those countries. In the Western Hemisphere they occur from southeastern Canada through the eastern United States south to the southern tip of South America (Magallanes Province, Chile), with their greatest diversity in the Neotropics. In the West Indies only several species of the genus Acordulecera are known from Montserrat, St. Kitts, St. Vincent, and Dominica. Only one genus, Acordulecera with several species, occurs in Canada and the United States. Of the 14 subfamilies, three, Pergulinae, Philomastiginae, and Perreyiinae, are common to both the Australasian and Neotropical regions but no genera occur in both regions.

Totals in this catalogue are 34 valid genera and 270 valid species for the Western Hemisphere and 26 valid genera and 163 valid species for the Australasian Region (see summary table of species in the world). Of the 163 Australasian species, 140 species occur in Australia and 23 species are confined to Indonesia (Sulawesi, West Papua) and Papua New Guinea.