Helicoverpa Zea

The larva of the moth Helicoverpa zea (formerly in the genus Heliothis) is a major agricultural pest. It can feed on many different plants (i.e. it is polyphagous) during the larval stage. Accordingly, the species has been given many different common names. When the larva consumes cotton, it is known as the cotton bollworm. When it consumes corn, it is known as the corn earworm. When it consumes tomatoes, it is known as the tomato fruitworm. It has also been known to consume many other crops. The adult moth is a pollinator and it is pictured on the right engaging in this process.

The larva (caterpillar) is very aggressive and will bite. It has been known to attack and consume other larvae of the same species.

The impact of this pest has been and continues to be significant, especially because of the wide range of crops attacked, and the natural abundance of the species in the wild.

Helicoverpa armigera, a close relative of H. zea from which the latter evolved, is a major pest in Asia, Africa and Australia.

The insidious flower bug (Orius insidiosus), a pirate bug, feeds on the eggs of H. zea, thus acting as a biological control agent. The braconid wasp Microplitis croceipes, which deposits its eggs inside a living caterpillar, is also an important parasitoid of both H. zea and the related species Heliothis virescens.