Taxonomy
Kingdom:	Phylum:	Class:	Order:	Family:	Genus:	Species:
Animalia	Arthropoda	Insecta	Coleoptera	Cerambycidae	Leptura	L.quadrifasciata

This widespread and generally common longhorn occurs throughout central and northern Europe, extending east through Asia to China, north to the Arctic Circle in Scandinavia and to the far north of mainland UK where it remains locally common despite a general reduction over recent decades. Adults are active from June to August, although exceptionally they have been recorded as early as March, the typical habitat is woodland, wooded borders and wooded parkland where there is a supply of dead and decaying wood.

Adult Four-banded Longhorn Beetles are between 11 and 20 mm long, black with four more or less continuous transverse yellow bands. In extreme cases the elytra may be almost entirely black. The hair on the pronotum is grey-yellow. In the female, the blades become lighter at the top.

The larvae develop in dead or decaying wood, especially in the lower parts of standing trees, stumps, felled trunks and fallen branches. They make meandering galleries in various trees, including oak, beech, birch, willow, alder, elder and spruce. Their development usually takes 2 years.