First Report of Western Bean Cutworm (Striacosta albicosta ) in Pennsylvania

Abstract

The western bean cutworm [Striacosta albicosta (Smith); Noctuidae] (Fig. 1) is a lepidopteran species native to western North America; however, this occasionally serious pest of corn (Zea mays L.) and dry beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) has been expanding its range eastward (1,2,3,4). From 1998 to 2004, it was reported invading Minnesota, Illinois, and Missouri (2,3,4). Moths were first reported from Indiana in 2005, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ohio in 2006 (2), and in Ontario, Canada, as well as Wayne Co., OH, less than 150 km from Pennsylvania, in 2008.