Banded Sunflower Moth

Written collaboratively by Adam J. Varenhorst, Patrick Wagner, Philip Rozeboom, Bradley McManus, Govinda Shrestha, Patrick Beauzay, and Janet J. Knodel.

The banded sunflower moth, Cochylichroa hospes (Walsingham) (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae), is an annual pest of commercial sunflowers in the Dakotas (Charlet and Busacca 1986). In recent years, this pest has been more of an issue in North Dakota than in South Dakota and has been relatively minor there. Many previous reports on the banded sunflower moth suggest that it is often present in sunflowers at subeconomic populations (Shulz 1978). However, historical records from South Dakota indicate that the banded sunflower moth has been a major pest, with seed damage comparable to that caused by the red sunflower seed weevil (Smolek et al. 1985). Banded sunflower moth caterpillars feed on developing kernels, causing seed damage and reduced marketability of sunflower seeds.

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