Tobacco Budworm Moth
Chloridea virescens (Fabricius, 1777)
Family: Noctuidae
Subfamily: Heliothentinae
Identification: Forewing pale green with 3 nearly parallel lines as in Subflexus Straw, but usually no white edging on basal side of median line. Postmedian line ends before reaching costa and is not continued to apex by black dash. Reniform spot outline darker, outer side more curved. Hindwing white, usually with prominent gray shading, though this is absent in some males.
Wing Span: 2.7-3.8 cm.
Life History:
Flight: 2 broods, May - October.
Caterpillar Hosts: Larva is a serious pest on tobacco. First brood larvae eat buds while second brood eat flowers and seedpods. Also feeds on ageratum, geraniums, roses, and members of the nightshade family.
Adult Food:
Habitat:
Range: Maine and southern Ontario to Florida, west to Nebraska and Texas.
Conservation:
NCGR: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs:
Taxonomy Notes: Formerly in the genus Heliothis. See Pogue (2013), Lafontaine & Schmidt (2015), Lafontaine & Schmidt, 2015: 140.
Alternate Scientific Names:
Heliothis virescens
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 97 - 120 of 241 verified sightings
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Observation date: Aug 25, 2019
Submitted by: Bugman7
Region: Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Jan 04, 2021
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Observation date: Sep 03, 2018
Submitted by: CuriousKids
Region: New London County, Connecticut, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Dec 22, 2020
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org./sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/20200908_173201.jpg?itok=bO6UX2ll)
Observation date: Sep 08, 2020
Submitted by: Gardening birder
Region: Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Dec 19, 2020
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Observation date: Sep 24, 2019
Submitted by: Schuylkbilly
Region: New Castle County, Delaware, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Dec 07, 2020
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Observation date: Aug 04, 2020
Submitted by: lgforhan
Region: Franklin County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Dec 07, 2020
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Observation date: Aug 29, 2016
Submitted by: Chaos1097
Region: Franklin County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Dec 07, 2020
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Observation date: Sep 05, 2017
Submitted by: DBalog
Region: Franklin County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Dec 07, 2020
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Observation date: Nov 01, 2016
Submitted by: Karen Adams
Region: Franklin County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Dec 07, 2020
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Observation date: Oct 12, 2017
Submitted by: msrobin58
Region: Fairfield County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Dec 07, 2020
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org./sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/chloridea_virescenssendelbach.jpg?itok=A39ax78f)
Observation date: Aug 19, 2020
Submitted by: BarbSendelbach
Region: Sussex County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Nov 04, 2020
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Observation date: Oct 23, 2020
Submitted by: Ohio97
Region: Montgomery County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Oct 25, 2020
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Observation date: Oct 16, 2020
Submitted by: DiSH Photography
Region: Duval County, Florida, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Oct 20, 2020
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org./sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/mad-bluespringsp_2020_09_04_-_moth_2.jpg?itok=EO-0JpIG)
Observation date: Sep 04, 2020
Submitted by: bvlusa
Region: Hamilton County, Florida, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Sep 30, 2020
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Observation date: Sep 25, 2020
Submitted by: JMJaskula
Region: Boone County, Indiana, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Sep 25, 2020
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Observation date: Aug 16, 2020
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe (Terrie Johnson)
Region: Orangeburg County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Sep 19, 2020
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Observation date: Sep 16, 2020
Submitted by: Samiann7
Region: Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Sep 18, 2020
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org./sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/tob_moth_1_2.jpg?itok=ljYNn_5o)
Observation date: Sep 16, 2020
Submitted by: jwilkinson
Region: Howard County, Maryland, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Sep 16, 2020
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org./sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/heliothis_virescens_08-27-2019.jpg?itok=Uykt9fuw)
Observation date: Aug 27, 2019
Submitted by: Brittanie
Region: New York County, New York, United States
Verified by: Sue Gregoire
Verified date: Jul 19, 2020
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org./sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/20191024_1439212.jpg?itok=uXljREzW)
Observation date: Oct 24, 2019
Submitted by: Miya
Region: Ocean County, New Jersey, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Apr 09, 2020
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Observation date: Apr 02, 2020
Submitted by: Dr. Z.
Region: Leon County, Florida, United States
Verified by: curtis.lehman
Verified date: Apr 04, 2020
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Observation date: Sep 09, 2018
Submitted by: aflutterby
Region: Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States
Verified by: Tom Middagh
Verified date: Jan 15, 2020
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org./sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/subflexus_straw.jpg?itok=HjttglDQ)
Observation date: Aug 24, 2019
Submitted by: John LeBlanc
Region: Chesterfield County, Virginia, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Nov 23, 2019
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Observation date: Aug 04, 2019
Submitted by: tirvine2020
Region: Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Nov 23, 2019
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org./sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/tobuhelvirfpope7444.jpeg?itok=pfHoRxr0)
Observation date: Aug 19, 2019
Submitted by: franpope
Region: Garrett County, Maryland, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Nov 22, 2019
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