Moths of North Carolina
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View PDFNoctuidae Members:
Helicoverpa Members:
435 NC Records

Helicoverpa zea (Boddie, 1850) - Corn Earworm Moth

Helicoverpa zeaHelicoverpa zeaHelicoverpa zeaHelicoverpa zea
Taxonomy
Superfamily:
Noctuoidea		 Family:
Noctuidae		Subfamily:
Heliothinae		P3 Number:
932045		 MONA Number:
11068.00
Identification
Field Guide Descriptions: Covell (1984; as Heliothis zea); Beadle and Leckie (2012)Online Resources: MPG, BugGuide, iNaturalist, Google, BAMONA, GBIF, BOLD                                                                                 
Adult ID Requirements: Identifiable from good quality photos of unworn specimens.
Distribution in North Carolina
Distribution:
County Map: Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Helicoverpa zea
Flight Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge
Immature Dates:
 High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
 Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
 Piedmont (Pd)
 Coastal Plain (CP)

Click on graph to enlarge
Habitats and Life History
Habitats: This species occurs in croplands, wastelands, old fields, and other open, herbaceous habitats.
Larval Host Plants: One of the major crop pests around the world, larvae feed on a very wide range of herbaceous plants, belonging to many families. Wagner et al. (2011) specifically list asparagus (Asparagus officinalis), cucumber (Cucumis sativus), soybean (Glycine max), cotton (Gossypium hirsutum), sunflower (Helianthus annuus), tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum), ground-cherry (Physalis), tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), and corn (Zea mays). In North Carolina, larvae have been reared from corn. - View
Wikipedia
See also Habitat Account for General Fields, Gardens, and Ruderal Habitats
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks: G5 SNR [S5]
State Protection: Has no legal protection, although permits are required to collect it on state parks and other public lands.
Comments:

 Photo Gallery for Helicoverpa zea - Corn Earworm Moth

159 photos are available. Only the most recent 30 are shown.

Recorded by: Dean Furbish and Joy Wiggins on 2025-05-02
Pender Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: R. Newman on 2025-04-28
Carteret Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: R. Newman on 2024-10-26
Carteret Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2024-10-13
Madison Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Jim Petranka and Becky Elkin on 2024-10-13
Madison Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Mark Basinger and Donald Zepp on 2024-10-03
Johnston Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Basinger and Donald Zepp on 2024-10-03
Johnston Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-09-28
Wilson Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-09-12
Wilson Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Jeff Niznik, David George on 2024-09-07
Alamance Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-09-03
Wilson Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: David George on 2024-08-31
Chatham Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2024-08-31
Durham Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: R. Newman on 2024-08-29
Carteret Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-08-22
Wilson Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Dean Furbish, Lior S. Carlson on 2024-08-14
Pamlico Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Lior S. Carlson, Dean Furbish on 2024-08-13
Pamlico Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: R. Newman on 2024-08-10
Carteret Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-08-09
Mitchell Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-07-30
Wilson Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: R. Newman on 2024-07-28
Carteret Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-07-17
Wilson Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-07-14
Brunswick Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-06-10
Wilson Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Dean Furbish on 2024-06-07
Wake Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Dean Furbish on 2024-05-09
Pender Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2024-05-03
Wilson Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-10-24
Wilson Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Stephen Hall on 2023-10-19
Orange Co.
Comment: 		Recorded by: John Petranka on 2023-10-10
Warren Co.
Comment: