This is our 15th week of monitoring moth pests in Ohio. Between July 28th and August 3rd, we continued to monitor corn earworm (CEW) and Western bean cutworm (WBC). The statewide averages for WBC and CEW decreased in the majority of counties over the past week. This week we also started to monitor for fall Armyworm (FAW) to detect whether recent storms brought moths to Ohio.
Fall Armyworm
Fall armyworm is a pest that migrates to Ohio between July – September. It does not overwinter in Ohio and is typically brought in via storm fronts. Because we have been experiencing several storms recently, we decided to start our FAW monitoring early to catch any early FAW entering the state. We advise all counties to switch their WBC traps if they have had low numbers in the past weeks. Additional traps can also be placed. Contact Amy Raudenbush (raudenbush.3@osu.edu) if you want to monitor FAW but do not have lures. Bucket traps are being used to monitor FAW adults (Figure 1). Those monitoring should be aware of FAW look-alikes that can end up in the traps, such as the yellow striped armyworm (Figure 2).
This week 2 counties reported FAW numbers (Figure 3). There were no moths found in Portage. However, Wayne County reported 2 moths. Stay tuned for more information on additional counties in upcoming newsletters.
Figure 1. Fall Armyworm moth. Male moth (left). Female moth (right). Photo credit: Lyle J. Buss, University of Florida
Figure 2. Common look-alikes of FAW. Yellow-stripped Armyworm wings closed (left). And top view (right). Photo credits: Curtis Young.
More information on FAW can be found here: Fall Armyworm in Ohio Field Crops | Ohioline
Fall Armyworm Moth Map
Week #1
July 28th to August 3rd, 2025
Figure 3. Fall Armyworm (FAW) moths captured from July 28th to August 3rd. The bold number indicates the average moth count for the week, followed by the total number of traps in that county.
Western Bean Cutworm
This week, 22 counties monitored WBC with a total of 56 traps (Figure 4). A total of 19 counties recorded having WBC this week, which is an increase from the previous week. However, the average moths per county dropped to an average of 1.4 moths. Last week, the average was 4.1 moths. These numbers indicate we may be past the peak of WBC in Ohio. Geauga County had the largest number of moths (6.5) (Figure 4). The numbers for WBC have remained low the past two weeks, and we are likely past peak WBC so scouting for egg masses at this time may not be helpful as there may be few egg masses in the field. However, if you’re curious about what you may find, field inspections can still be taken as a precautionary step.
Western Bean Cutworm Moth Map
Week #9
July 28th to August 3rd, 2025
Figure 4. Average Western Bean Cutworm (WBC) moths captured from July 28th to August 3rd. The bold number indicates the average moth count for the week followed by the total number of traps in that county.
Corn Earworm
Figure 5. Corn earworm moth. Photo credit: Curtis Young, OSU
This week we monitored 34 traps in 16 counties across Ohio for CEW moths (Figure 5). The statewide averages of CEW decreased with an average of 0.12 moths per county (Figure 6). Morgan County had the highest moth average, which was 1.7. Overall, the statewide averages of CEW have remained low since the beginning of June.
More information on CEW can be found here: Corn Earworm in Field Corn; Watch for Molds | Agronomic Crops Network
Corn Earworm Moth Map
Week #9
July 28th to August 3rd, 2025
Figure 6. Average corn earworm (CEW) moths captured from July 28th to August 3rd. The bold number indicates the average moth count for the week followed by the total number of traps in that county.