Breeding Tenthredinidae (sawflies)?

Hi all,

This afternoon my 2yr old proudly presented me with some small caterpillars she had found on a bush of Ribes ova crispa in the garden. Alas for her - and perhaps for the Ribes - I quickly counted 8 pairs of hind legs, which would make it larvae of sawfly (Blattwespen). (Of course I did not tell her that, but was glad she brought these nice caterpillars to my attention and all that...)

Now I am curious if anyone has ever tried breeding these insects (I suppose some people have ). Are they, for example, host plant specific or can they be grown on different plants as well? (I´d rather spare my Ribes) How much different? And/or on cut leaves too? What lifecycle can I expect?

Alas I cannot inlcude a pic of the little culprits here, since my telelens won´t zoom in on the max 15 mm long larvae. The smaller ones are greenish yellow and a bit plump, the bigger ones are green with lots of tiny black spots and black eyes. But I read everywehere that sawflies are terribly complicated to name anyway, so don´t bother too much with determination. We´ll see what it becomes. Hopefully.

Since my daughter still believes her dad can work all kinds of godly magic with all kinds of things including caterpillars and I would rather keep that naievite intact for a little while longer, I have set myself the task of growing her little Tenthredinidae bastards to their surprising adulthood, while sparing my Ribes from devastation in the same time. Anyone any tips on how that can be done? It would earn you the good grace of this godly magician

Best regards,

Harmen