Damage
Each larva can consume over 400 square centimetres of foliage during its development. They feed above ground until about the fourth instar. After that they do considerable damage to crops by severing young plants at ground level. In the midwestern USA the black cutworm is considered to be a serious pest of corn which is very susceptible at the one-leaf stage but by the 4 or 5-leaf stage it is relatively unaffected. Damage to the underground parts of plants can also be harmful. Other crops where serious damage occurs include cotton, maize, tobacco, sunflower, tomatoes, sugar beet and potato.
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