Cirphis Loreyi

a moth of the family Noctuidae (owlet moths), which is an especially harmful pest of corn and sugarcane. It is straw-yellow or light flaxen. The wingspread is 20–30 mm. The caterpillars are pale yellow, with four longitudinal dark stripes on the back.

Cirphis Loreyi are found in southern Europe, North Africa, South and Southeast Asia, Polynesia, and Australia. In the USSR these insects inhabit the Crimea, Transcaucasia, and Middle Asia. In Middle Asia they usually develop in three generations. The caterpillars damage leaves, inflorescences, and the developing caryopses. They also foul the ears greatly with their excrement, causing rotting of unharmed caryopses. Countermeasures include deep late fall plowing, harrowing before planting, interrow hoeing during the caterpillars’ pupal stage, and distribution of toxic attractants in planted areas when great numbers of caterpillars appear.