Europe and Asia, from Pacific sea in the western Europe to Atlantic sea in the eastern Asia, and from Mediterranean sea to the northern limits of conifer forests, in the northern part of the Caucasian Mountains, Mongolia, China, Korea, Japan.
Mainly the Norway spruce, occasionally the common fir, larch, Scots pine and other conifers.
Adults are 14-28 mm long, black. Elytrae are with whitish spots of hair that in case of females create bands across. Scutellum covered with yellowish dense pubescence divided in the middle by the hairless line. The egg is white, about 3.8 mm long. The larva is up to 45 mm long. The pupa is 20-26 mm long, with spines at the end of abdomen.
Adults fly from mid-June through September. Adults have maturation feeding on the bark of young shoots, branches and the upper part of stems. Newly hatched larvae feed under the bark, on the phloem, cambium and upper sapwood for the first 20-30 days. Then they bore into the wood up to 4 cm in depth. Larval galleries in wood are about 8 mm wide and 15 cm long. The larva molts 4 times. After overwintering, the larva constructs the pupal chamber of 40-50x13 mm in size. The pupal stage lasts 16-21 days. Adults exit through oval holes of 6-7 mm in diameter. This species has one generation per one, occasionally two years, but in the higher parts of mountains - even 3 years.
Monochamus sutor is a technical and physiological pest, which prefers mountain spruce forests weakened by abiotic and biotic factors. It lowers the value of the wood.
Control and preventive measures
Similar to Monochamus sartor
- Kolk A., Starzyk J. R., 1996: The Atlas of Forest Insect Pests
(Atlas skodliwych owadów lesnych) - Multico Warszawa, 705 pages. Original publication in Polish. English translation provided by Dr. Lidia Sukovata and others under agreement with The Polish Forest Research Institute.