Entomologists at the University of Illinois need your help by participating in their annual moth trapping network. They’re hoping to get a better grasp on when the pests arrive and how to better predict when injury might happen to crops in the field.
They’re looking to track Black Cutworms and Armyworms coming into the state.
“What we are looking for early is cooperators that might want to monitor to black cut worm or true army worm traps and that occurs from the beginning of April through the end of May, the first week of June depending on how the planting season is going,” Kelly Estes, the university’s Ag Pest Survey Coordinator said.
Estes says getting involved is easy since they provide the traps and lures. She says all you have to do is check the traps three times a week.
To help identify what’s been caught, Estes says the traps are insect-specific and should only attract what the trap is designed for.