Migratory-moth
Guides
Agrotis ipsilon
dark sword-grass, ipsilon dart, black cutworm, greasy cutworm, floodplain cutworm
Agrotis ipsilon is a globally distributed noctuid moth whose larvae, known as black cutworms, are serious agricultural pests. Adults are medium-sized with distinctive black Y-shaped or epsilon-shaped markings on brown forewings. The species exhibits seasonal migration, traveling north in spring and south in fall to avoid temperature extremes. Larvae feed on a wide range of vegetable crops and grains, cutting plants at or below the soil surface and causing significant economic damage.
Euxoa
miller moths, cutworm moths
Euxoa is a genus of noctuid moths established by Jacob Hübner in 1821, comprising approximately 305 species distributed primarily across dry and semi-dry regions of the northern hemisphere. The genus is notably absent from South-East Asia and Australia. Larvae are cutworms that feed on surface vegetation and occasionally climb plants. The genus includes the army cutworm moth (Euxoa auxiliaris), a significant agricultural pest whose adult aggregations serve as a critical food source for grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
Hymenia
Hawaiian beet webworm moth (for H. recurvalis)
Hymenia is a genus of crambid moths in the subfamily Spilomelinae, established by Hübner in 1825. The genus includes at least three described species: Hymenia perspectalis (Hübner, 1796), Hymenia nigerrimalis (Hampson, 1900), and Hymenia lophoceralis (Hampson, 1912). The most extensively studied species is Hymenia recurvalis, commonly known as the Hawaiian beet webworm, which has become a significant agricultural pest of leafy vegetables and weeds across tropical and subtropical regions worldwide.