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Symphyta is a group of insects, a taxonomic suborder of the Hymenoptera. The Symphyta are commonly referred to as sawflies, and include insects belonging to several families. They are considered to be the most primitive Hymenoptera and are closely related to wasps, bees and ants, those being members of the suborder ApocritaApocrita species : Eukaryota : Animalia : Metazoa : Arthropoda : Hexapoda : Insecta : Pterygota : Neoptera : Endopterygota : Hymenoptera Apocrita Superfamilies of Apocrita Apoidea Ceraphronoidea Chalcidoidea Chrysidoidea Cynipoidea Evanoidea Ichneumoidea.

Sawflies are distinguishable from most other Hymenoptera by the broad connection between the abdomenThe abdomen (from the Latin word meaning "belly") is the part of the body between the pelvis and the thorax. The front of the abdomen is the abdominal cavity, which is separated from the thoracic cavity by the diaphragm. The lining of the abdomen is calle and the thoraxtsetse fly, showing the head, thorax and abdomen The thorax is a division of an animal's body, that lies between the head and the abdomen. In humans, the thorax is the region of the body that extends from the neck to the diaphragm, not including the upper (see image). The common name comes from the appearance of the ovipositorThe ovipositor is an organ used by some of the arthropods to deposit their eggs. It consists of a maximum of three pairs of appendages formed to transmit the egg, to prepare a place for it, and to place it properly. In some of the insects the organ is use, which looks much like the blade of a saw. This ovipositor, which is modified into a stinger in members of the Apocrita, is not used as a weapon. Females use the ovipositor to cut into plants where they lay their eggs. A few species have long thin ovipositors used to drill holes deep into wood.

The larvae look like caterpillars (the larvae of moths and butterflies). Adult sawflies, except for those in the family Cephidae , have structures on the underside of the forewings that help hold the wings in place when the insect is at rest. These cenchri, which are absent in member of the suborder Apocrita, are located behind the scutellum on the thorax.

Sawfly larvae are herbivorous, the group feeding on a wide range of plants. Individual species, however, are quite specific in their choice of plants used for food. The larvae of various species exhibit leaf-miningA leaf mine is a chamber cut into the leaf of a plant by the larvae of a moth, fly, beetle, sawfly or other insect. The mine often contains frass, or dropings, and it is often possible to identify the insect making the mine by a combination of host plant,, leaf rolling or gallFor the saint, see Saint Gall. Galls are the proliferation of cell tissue in plants and can be caused by various living agents from fungi and bacteria, to various insects and mites. Often, they are very organised structures and because of this, the cause formation. Large populations can cause economic damage in cultivated areas and forests. Adults are carnivorous, eating other insects, but many also feed on nectar.