Sesamia nonagrioides (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae) is a moth which larvae feed by boring tunnels into stems of several plants species from the Poales group, namely Poaceae (graminaceous species), Typhaceae and Cyperaceae. It originates from sub-Saharan Africa and populations established in southern Europe and middle East before the last ice-age, about 178,000 years ago (Kergoat et al., 2015). While it develops mostly on wild plants in its native area, it has become a serious pest of maize in France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Turkey and of sugarcane in this last country and in Iran. In France populations tend to increase in size and geographic distribution; it is now the third main insect pest of maize (Thibord et al. 2017).
Life cycle of Sesamia nonagrioides, Lepidoptera, Noctuidae
