Black Cutworm
Egg - The egg is white, round, and about 0.5 mm in diameter.
Larva - The six instars range from 3.5 to 45.5 mm in length. Above the spiracles (tiny breathing holes along the sides), the larva is uniformly one color, varying from light gray to nearly black. The spiracles are distinctly black. When disturbed, the larva curls into a C-shaped ball. Color plate.
Pupa - The brown pupa is about 17 to 22 mm long, with distinct mouthparts and antennae.
Host Plants - The black cutworm feeds on a wide range of field and garden crops. Corn and tobacco are two of its most preferred crops. Other known hosts include asparagus, bean, beet, cabbage, castor bean, cotton, grape, lettuce, peanut, pepper, potato, radish, spinach, squash, strawberry, and tomato.
Damage - Several kinds of cutworms may damage peanuts under certain conditions in North Carolina, but the black cutworm is one of the most important. Its biology and damage are typical of cutworms in general. During the day these large dark caterpillars hid under trash, in cracks, or below the soil surface where they feed on pegs or pods. At night they feed on the stems and foliage and often move from plant to plant.
Life History - Little is known about the biology of this pest in North Carolina, but in Tennessee there are four broods between March and December. Moths of the first brood emerge between the middle of March and the first of May, shortly after which they mate. Oviposition begins 5 to 11 days after emergence. Typically, clusters of up to 30 eggs are deposited on low, densely growing plants like curly dock and mustard. The egg stage lasts 3 to 16 days, depending upon the temperature. The caterpillars develop through 6 instars in about 3 to 4 weeks. The pupal stage lasts from 2 to 3 weeks during the summer; after September, pupae may require 8 or 9 weeks to develop. Overwintering in North Carolina occurs in the pupal stage though a few black cutworms overwinter as larvae.
