Identification of Cutworms

Army Cutworm
- Region: West of the Mississippi River.
- Larvae are grayish-black with patterns of gray and brown stripes down the length of the abdomen.
- Host plants include wheat, barley, mustard, alfalfa, vegetables, and various weeds.

Black Cutworm
- Region: North America
- Causes the most economic damage of all cutworm species.
- Larvae are black-pale gray with a greasy appearing texture and convex granules on the abdominal segments. They vary in size from 1/8-inch to 2 inches.3
- Common in weedy, no-till and late-planted corn fields.
- Host plants include corn, vegetables, cotton, tobacco, and weed species.
- Damage: small irregular holes in the leaves; later instars may cut stems below the soil surface resulting in plant death.3

Bristly Cutworm
- Region: East of the Mississippi River, also LA, NM, CO, KS, NE, and TX
- Causes the most economic damage of all cutworm species.
- Larvae are dull gray-brown with stripes along the sides with stiff protruding hairs and dark diamond-shaped markings on their back.
- Larvae feed near the soil surface, mostly on non-cultivated plants, hay, grasses, and legumes.
- Host plants include corn, vegetables, cotton, tobacco, and weed species.
- This species is a minor pest for corn, although occasionally it can cause heavy damage.
Bronzed Cutworm
- Region: All states except Gulf states, Utah, and Wyoming
- The larvae are dark shiny bronze with four brown and three yellow stripes, extending the length of the body.
- Economic problems in corn can occur when it is planted into sod or pasture grasses.
- Feeding occurs at the soil surface on young corn plants and in the crowns of grasses.

Claybacked Cutworm
- Region: Northcentral and eastern United States.
- Larvae are pale gray and translucent with gray-brown head, bars on the front of the face, and a broad yellow-brown stripe on the back.
- Larvae can be very destructive to seedling corn. Small larva eats the leaf from tip to base, larger larva cut the leaves/plants just above the ground and drag them into a burrow to feed on.

Dingy Cutworm
- Region: Southern Canada extending south to Utah and east to Virginia.
- Larvae are gray to reddish brown, abdominal segments have gray V-shaped markings on their back.
- Mature larvae are about 1-inch long.
- Host plants include vegetables, clover, alfalfa, tobacco, wheat, corn, grasses, and broadleaf weeds.
- It rarely feeds on corn, but when it does, it usually nips the ends of young corn leaves.

Pale Western Cutworm
- Region: Great Plains, Texas Panhandle, westward to Rocky Mountains
- Larvae are yellow-brown with green-gray stripes along the back and sides. The head is amber to black with a black, inverted V marking on the front of the head.
- Host plants include wheat, oat, corn, barley, alfalfa, and sunflower.
- Cutworm burrows into the soil feeding on the stem below the soil surface. The greatest amount of injury usually occurs from April to June in dryland crops.

Sandhill Cutworm
- Region: Sandy soils
- Larvae are white to pale gray with faint white stripes on the back and sides and the head is dull red-brown in color.
- Larvae are seldom seen above the ground surface because they feed on the underground plant parts.

Variegated Cutworm
- Region: All states
- They can attack forest trees, vegetables, and field crops including corn, alfalfa, clover, cotton, sunflower, tobacco, and wheat.
- Larvae vary in color and have a line of pale yellow dots along the back.
- Larvae can feed on corn leaves and may eat the center of the stalk down to 2 to 3 inches below the ground, or often cut plants near the soil surface.
For more information on cutworm management consider reading Management of the Most Common Cutworms.
Sources:
1 Hein, G.L., Campbell, J.B., Danielson, S.D., and Kalisch, J. 1993. Management of the army cutworm and pale western cutworm. G1145. University of Nebraska Extension.
2 Bailey, W. Black cutworm monitoring and forecasting program. University of Missouri.
3 Black Cutworm. Purdue University. https://extension.entm.purdue.edu
4 Steffy, K., Rice, M., Andow, D., Gray, M., and Van Duyn, J. 1999. Handbook of corn insects. Entomology Society of America.
5 Peairs, F.B. 2010. Caterpillars in small grains. Colorado State University Extension.
Web sources verified 2/9/18
ID 180218110644