Insect Alert For

Western Bean Cutworm

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

The annual western bean cutworm flight is beginning to increase in specific hot-spots in the corn-growing region as accumulated heat units and crop stages continue to advance. Moderate risks continue across northern Indiana as well as northern Kansas and southern Nebraska where trap counts are the highest at the present time. Additional Moderate risks are now in place across northwest Ohio and Wisconsin with expanded risks east in these states by next week. Low risks envelop an increasingly larger portion of the corn-growing region in the next week with fields from Kansas, Nebraska, southeast South Dakota, southern Minnesota, Iowa, northwest Missouri, northern Illinois, Wisconsin, northern and central Indiana and Ohio, and southern lower Michigan as well as northwest Pennsylvania and New York all at risk. Various crops in southern Ontario, Canada are also at risk in the next five days. Growers located especially in Moderate risk areas should monitor traps and also begin to look for egg masses on leaves where counts are highest and be prepared to take action if thresholds are met. Western bean cutworm problems are predicted to be more scattered but could be locally intense this year, so growers especially in the higher risk regions should monitor fields closely.