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2021 Iowa Moth Trapping Network Update: Week 3

April 26, 2021
Content Author: Ashley Dean

During week 3 of the Iowa Moth Trapping Network (April 11 to April 17), our cooperators reported 62 total black cutworm (BCW) and 9 true armyworm (TAW) moths. Cooler conditions recently may have slowed down moth migration into the state, but black cutworm remains the dominant species caught in traps around the state.

Week 3 report

The 9 TAW moths were captured sporadically across the state (Figure 1). Similarly, black cutworm activity was statewide during week 3 (Figure 2). Of the 62 moths reported, most of them were reported on April 12. One significant flight occurred during week 3 in Mahaska County on April 12. This is in addition to the previously reported significant flight in Mahaska County during week 2 when significant flights occurred in 5 counties. You can read more about what a significant flight means in the Week 2 update.

TAW reports April 11 to April 17 2021
Figure 1. True armyworm moth captures from April 11 to April 17. The bold number indicates the total moth count for the week, while the smaller number in parentheses is a running total of the moth count for the season; highlighted counties without numbers indicate that traps are placed but no reports have been received. Some counties have multiple sites; therefore, data is only reported for the site with the highest count during the week. Data is current as of April 26, 2021.
BCW reports April 11 to April 17 2021
Figure 2. Black cutworm moth captures from April 11 to April 17. The bold number indicates the total moth count for the week, while the smaller number in parentheses is a running total of the moth count for the season; highlighted counties without numbers indicate that traps are placed but no reports have been received. Some counties have multiple sites; therefore, data is only reported for the site with the highest count during the week. Data is current as of April 26, 2021.

These updates are typically a week behind. If you are interested in staying up-to-date on the moth trapping network, visit https://corn.ipmpipe.org/insects/ to see live mapping from Iowa, Wisconsin, and Illinois. The true armyworm and black cutworm pages feature 1) an interactive map showing the total count for the current 7-day window – clicking on a county will show you a line graph of trap captures, and 2) a time-lapse map of counts for the entire season. The black cutworm page also has a map that I will update with predicted cutting dates (note: this map is not real-time).

Follow these links to see the reports from Week 1 and Week 2.

Surrounding states also monitor and report BCW and TAW captures. If you live near the state border, it may be beneficial to check these resources periodically. More resources may be available than what is listed here:

Links to this article are strongly encouraged, and this article may be republished without further permission if published as written and if credit is given to the author, Integrated Crop Management News, and Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. If this article is to be used in any other manner, permission from the author is required. This article was originally published on April 26, 2021. The information contained within may not be the most current and accurate depending on when it is accessed.

Authored by
Ashley Dean
Ashley Dean
  • Extension Education Specialist, Entomology
Ashley is an extension specialist for field crop entomology at Iowa State University. Ashley coordinates the Iowa Moth Trapping Network, the Regional Corn Rootworm Monitoring Network, and the Iowa Pest Alert Network. She also develops educational resources for field crop pests in Iowa and aids in the research efforts of the Soybean Research Laboratory.

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