Insect Alert For

Corn Earworm

Risk Level:
Moderate Risk Level
Affected Area:
Full page
Alert Details

An active week of weather is predicted across much of the corn-growing region as we move into the first full week of June, with no less than two to three separate weather systems expected to affect the area through next weekend. With an active first generation of corn earworm moths present in the mid-south and southern states, the opportunity for corn earworm flights into the corn-growing region will be possible in conjunction with this active weather pattern. Moderate risks are in place in association with the first weather system tonight into Tuesday morning mainly across portions of far southeast and eastern Illinois, Indiana, western Ohio, and northern Kentucky as a cold front pushes into this region. Southwest winds are predicted to originate from favorable source regions in the mid-south and may result in a scattered moth flight into this region. Quickly on the heels of the first system will be a likely more potent low pressure system that will develop across Kansas and Nebraska on Tuesday. The cold front passing through today will likely stall out tonight between I-70 and I-80, and this boundary will serve as a focal point for showers and storms later Tuesday into Tuesday night as well as a dividing line between southerly winds to the south and more easterly winds to the north. Corn earworms may move north and encounter the precipitation Tuesday night especially across portions of southeast Iowa, Missouri, and Illinois. A Moderate risk has been placed in this region with Low risks as far north as northern Iowa, southern Wisconsin, and southwest Michigan and as far east as Indiana. No risk is predicted thereafter until we move into the weekend. Growers are advised that the first corn earworm generation is generally not harmful to crops as crops are not at susceptible stages to damage right now. This generation, however, is important for the second generation later in the summer and higher moth populations in the first generation can lead to a higher second generation population so growers are urged to monitor their traps to observe the level of moth activity in the next week.