REDBACKED CUTWORM LIFE CYCLE AND BIOLOGY

CONTENTS

Identification

Management

Sampling and Action Threshold

Registered Insecticides

References

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Redbacked Cutworm Larva	Redbacked Cutworm Adult

Redbacked cutworm, Euxoa ochrogaster, and a complex of other Euxoa species (E. olivia, E. messoria, E. infracta, E. septentrionalis, and E. recula) feed on mint and other crops East of the Cascade Mountains. These other cutworm species occur at about the same time as the redbacked cutworm, but they have different life cycles and the larval feeding damage overlaps among the different species from March through June.

Redbacked cutworm overwinters in the soil as eggs or small larvae. Eggs hatch in March and April as soil temperatures increase. Larvae feed on mint roots beneath the soil surface by day and/or on foliage during the night. Individual larvae feed for 5 to 8 weeks. Most of the damage occurs in late April, May and early June. When mature, the larvae pupate in earthen cells in the soil.

Adults begin emerging in July and flight continues until late August or early September (Berry, 1975). Moths are active at night. Females deposit eggs during late August and early September. Embryonic development occurs immediately. However, eggs of this species do not hatch until the following spring. There is only one generation each year.