The hindwings do not have obvious markings and are pale gray with darker gray near the veins and edges. Identifying features include a small black dagger or dart-shaped mark that extends outward from a faint kidney - reniform - spot near the light to dark boundary of the forewing. The forewing is dark brown to black with a lighter distal - away from the body when spread for flight - edge. The adult black cutworm is a moderate-sized moth with a wingspan of about 1.5 inches (Figure 1). Depending on when the moths arrive in Minnesota and temperatures, black cutworms will go through one or more generations until late-summer conditions trigger a southward migration. The black cutworm goes through a complete metamorphosis with egg, larval, pupal and adult stages. In addition to corn, the larvae feed on a wide range of broadleaf and grass crops, weeds and other plants. Black cutworm adults feed on plant nectar. The larva -caterpillar - is the life stage that damages crops. In these areas, annual infestations are produced by moths migrating from southern overwintering areas each spring. Although a native of North America, it can’t survive winters in Minnesota or other latitudes with freezing winter temperatures. The black cutworm – Agrostis ipsilon Hüfnagel (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) – is widely distributed in the temperate regions of the world. Find information about black cutworm in Minnesota corn, including their characteristics, habitat, at-risk fields, signs of damage and strategies for managing infestations.
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