Scientific name: Spodoptera mauritia Order: Lepidoptera
Description
Lawn armyworm is a damaging pest when in the larval life stage. The larvae are a soft-bodied caterpillar with a dark coloured body up to 45mm long, they possess unique white and yellow striped patterns along the length of the back making them relatively easy to identify. When feeding, the larvae often appear in congregations, clumping around stems and foliage of the turf plant. Once mature, the caterpillar metamorphoses into a pale brown moth with a wingspan to 40mm, possesses a distinct white spot in the centre of the fore-wing.