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After a calm and warm weekend with above-average temperatures, a strong line of thunderstorms moved into Wisconsin late Tuesday afternoon. The storm system brought 0.9 inches of rain to Madison and 1.0-2.5 inches in other parts of the state on April 16-17. Overcast skies and light showers lingered throughout the week, slowing down the pace of early-season field activities. Spring tillage, oat seeding, and potato planting were 1-7 days ahead of last year and the 5-year average as of April 15, according to the latest USDA NASS Crop Report for Wisconsin, but were hampered by the wet weather. Pest Survey activities included setting and monitoring survey traps for black cutworm, true armyworm, and orchard insect pests, and continuing preparations for the field season ahead.
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The spring migration of black cutworm moths is monitored in Wisconsin and throughout the Midwest and Great Lakes region annually to provide advanced warning of potential larval outbreaks in May and early June. When weather patterns are conducive for migration, the moths can be carried on low-level jet stream currents from overwintering areas in Texas and Mexico to Wisconsin in only two days. Determining their arrival date and the first intense trap catches can help to identify the most opportune time to scout for cutworm larvae and apply controls, if needed.
This season, survey traps monitored by DATCP staff and 15 cooperators have been picking up northward migration flights of black cutworm moths since late March. The first Wisconsin catches of 2024 were registered on March 31 and intense captures were recorded by April 10. An intense capture of nine or more moths in two nights indicates areas of the state where major flights have occurred and marks the biofix for calculating black cutworm degree days. Captures of this level (13-43 moths per trap) have been documented so far at three of DATCP’s 41 monitoring sites, all in Dodge County. As of April 18, the 2024 black cutworm monitoring network has collected a cumulative total of 167 moths in 41 traps, or an average of 4.1 per trap.
Monitoring data shown in the black cutworm Corn ipmPIPE multistate map indicate that moth activity in Illinois, Iowa, and Wisconsin has generally been low as of April 17, although four counties in these three states have registered moderate counts of 10-50 moths per trap in the past week. Another important resource for tracking spring black cutworm flights is the Great Lakes and Maritimes Pest Monitoring Network, which offers cutworm migration data for Wisconsin and a broader geographic area extending northeast to Nova Scotia.
Counts for DATCP’s 41 trap sites will be published each Thursday on our Black Cutworm Monitoring page. A forecast of the peak seedling corn damage window for Wisconsin will be issued by early May. |
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Each growing season, dedicated apple growers throughout Wisconsin maintain pheromone traps in their orchards to monitor the seasonal activity of six economically important insects: apple maggot, codling moth, dogwood borer, lesser peachtree borer, redbanded leafroller, and obliquebanded leafroller. In 2024, a total of 27 cooperators representing 29 orchards from Burlington to Bayfield are participating in DATCP’s apple pest monitoring network. Most of our cooperators have been tracking insect activity and contributing data to our program for more than a decade. In fact, seven participants have been with our program for 15-20 years and another seven are beginning their 26th year of insect monitoring! We are also glad to welcome two new cooperators to our network this season: one from Merrimac in Columbia and another near St. Joseph in La Crosse County.
Data supplied through their efforts is integral to orchard integrated pest management programs and contributes to reduced damage and pesticide use. We would like to extend our sincerest thanks to all of our cooperators as we begin another pest monitoring season. Their insect counts will be posted on the DATCP Apple Orchard Pests page each week from today through August 31. |
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For the 2024 growing season, a new Insect Pest Text Alert service will soon be available to Wisconsin crop producers and agricultural professionals. Developed by the Dr. Emily Bick Lab at UW-Madison, in collaboration with UW-Extension and DATCP, this service is designed to deliver concise, timely field and forage crop pest notifications and updates through text messaging.
Whether it is an influx of black cutworm moths, advanced warning of true armyworm activity, or a reminder to begin scouting for corn rootworm beetles, the real-time text alerts will help optimize pest scouting and decision-making. As part of our new service, subscribers will receive:
- Scouting alerts based on field survey observations
- Pest updates throughout the growing season
- Useful resources for scouting and management
Text messaging will begin in late April or May, and we expect to provide up to 15 short updates throughout the season.
If you would like to receive our insect pest alerts directly to your cell phone, please click the “Sign Up Now” button below.
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