Large numbers of army cutworms (Euxoa auxiliaris) consumed above-ground portions of winter annuals and the foliage of sagebrush and chenopod shrubs in northern Owyhee County, Idaho in early 2014. This insect outbreak appears to have been the result of 1) numerous adult moths returning to the area the previous fall to lay eggs, followed by 2) a large rainstorm to germinate winter annuals, followed by 3) a warm, dry winter to allow high survival of larvae. I monitored four sites affected by army cutworms in northern Owyhee County from March 2014 to June 2015. I recorded qualitative and photographic data, including video, of army cutworm herbivory and the subsequent recovery of vegetation. In this talk, I�ll tell the story of how, over a dozen years, I learned about the population dynamics of these nocturnal larvae and their effects on sagebrush steppe vegetation. I�ll also describe the life history of the species, which, as adult miller moths, are an important food for grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
Oral presentation and poster titles, abstracts, and authors from the Society for Range Management (SRM) Annual Meetings and Tradeshows, from 2013 forward.