Document Type

Book Chapter

Publication Date

2024

Department

Agriculture

Keywords

cutworms, field crops, Canada, prairies, parasites

Abstract

There is a complex of cutworm species that are pests in western Canada, with important species including Agrotis orthogonia (pale western cutworm), Euxoa auxiliaris (army cutworm), and Euxoa ochrogaster (redbacked cutworm). Cutworm damage is sporadic and patchy, and as a result is difficult to predict. During outbreak years, insecticide applications and/or reseeding are necessary and yield losses can be significant. Recently, field-collected cutworm larvae were reared in the lab to estimate levels of parasitism, which ranged from 2% to 25%, depending on the province and the year of sampling, and to identify the parasitoid complex attacking cutworms. The parasitoid Cotesia vanessae has now been detected in Manitoba and Alberta and has been studied to determine its fundamental host range and to learn more about its biology. The results of laboratory studies using C. vanessae are reviewed, as are future directions for research on cutworm biological control.

Comments

This chapter was published in Biological Control Programmes in Canada, 2013-2023, eds. Meghan A. Vankosky and Veronique Martel, Boston, MA: CAB International, 2024.

Online access to book:

Biological Control Programmes in Canada, 2013-2023

Source Publication Title

Biological Control Programmes in Canada, 2013-2023

Publisher

CAB International

First Page

187

DOI

10.1079/9781800623279.0019

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