Pest profile

Granulate Cutworm

Feltia subterranea · Lepidoptera: Noctuidae[2]

Granulate cutworms hide just under the soil by day and feed at night, and in the South they're around all year.[1]

Granulate cutworm moth, a brown moth with darker markings, resting on a surface
Granulate cutworm moth, a brown moth with darker markings, resting on a surface. (c) Arthur de Jesús Chavarría Pérez, some rights reserved (CC BY) — via iNaturalist, CC BY 4.0

How to identify it

  • Young larvae stay on foliage at first, then hide shallowly in soil or debris by day, sometimes partly exposed.[1]
  • Females lay 800 to 1,600 eggs singly or in small clusters on upper leaf surfaces.[1]

Look-alikes

Look-alikeHow to tell them apart
Black cutworm and other cutwormsSeveral cutworm species hide by day and feed at night.[1]

Where it lives

Native to the Western Hemisphere and mainly tropical, it's found all year in Louisiana and Florida and only strays north to the northern U.S. and southern Canada.[1]

US map: public records from 25 states since 1990 (GBIF).

Biology and life cycle

Adults live 10 to 20 days and begin mating about a day after emerging.[1]

Damage and signs

  • Larvae feed at night on garden and crop plants.[1]

Health risk

It feeds on plants; UF/IFAS mentions no risk to people.[1]

Control

Prevention

Blacklight traps can monitor moth populations.[1]

Pesticides

Baits, especially bran-based baits, seem particularly effective.[1]

Common questions

What's cutting my seedlings at night in the South?
Granulate cutworms are one cause; they hide in soil by day.[1]
Do baits work?
Bran-based baits seem particularly effective.[1]

Sources

  1. University of Florida IFAS Extension (Featured Creatures), “Granulate Cutworm, Feltia subterranea (EENY-559).” edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/IN997 (accessed 2026-10-06)
  2. iNaturalist, “Feltia subterranea taxon page (order and family).” www.inaturalist.org/taxa/152979 (accessed 2026-10-06)

Updated 2026-10-14. Built from sourced records. Spot an error? Tell us.