Many land grant universities have established a network of these traps across their state and the counts are posted with predicted cutting dates. The synthetic pheromones are placed in sticky traps and the male moths are counted giving an indication on how large the moth flights have been. One of the best ways to monitor the movement of these moths is with pheromone traps which use a synthetic pheromone that is similar to the chemical compound that female BCW moths give off to attract male moths for mating. Recent storms in the eastern Corn Belt have created the perfect scenario for these flights with strong winds blowing from the south. The moths stay in the winds until they decide to drop out, contact cold air, or fall out of the air currents with rain in thunderstorms.

They move northward at night in the lower jet stream where the winds reach speeds of 30 to 80 miles per hour at 300 to 3000 feet above the earth. Each year black cutworm moths come back into the corn producing regions from Texas and Mexico because they overwinter in areas where the top soil does not freeze. Crop damage is something that occurs almost every year from black cutworms (BCW), although the areas affected are highly influenced by the weather.

Download types of cutworms