CreatureData

Beet armyworm

Spodoptera exigua (Hübner, 1808)

Status not recordedbutterflies and moths

The beet armyworm (Spodoptera exigua) is a species in the family Noctuidae, order Lepidoptera.

No freely licensed photo yet

Quick facts about the beet armyworm

Weight
Not recorded
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
Not recorded
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
Not recorded
Young per litter or clutch
Not recorded
Active
Day and night (cathemeral)
Generations a year
Two
Conservation status
Not recorded
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the beet armyworm live?

Not recorded

Where has it been introduced?

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the beet armyworm as introduced in 2 countries.

  1. Mexico
  2. United States

Introduced means brought by people and now present; invasive means the country's checklist records an impact. A species can be native to one part of a country and introduced in another. Source: Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (CC BY 4.0).

Is the beet armyworm endangered?

No conservation assessment is recorded for this species in our sources. That is not the same as being safe: it has not been matched to an assessment.

How is the beet armyworm classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumArthropoda
  3. classInsecta
  4. orderLepidoptera
  5. familyNoctuidae
  6. genusSpodoptera
  7. SpeciesSpodoptera exigua (Hübner, 1808)

Synonyms Caradrina albimacula, Caradrina decolorata, Caradrina exigua, Caradrina flavimaculata, Caradrina junceti, Caradrina pygmaea, Caradrina sebghana, Caradrina variegata, Caradrina venosa, Douzdrina protector, Laphygma antipodea, Laphygma canior, Laphygma caradrinoides, Laphygma exigua, Noctua exigua, Noctua fulgens, Spodoptera antipodea, Spodoptera caradrinoides, Spodoptera flavimaculata, Spodoptera fulgens, Spodoptera junceti, Spodoptera protector, Spodoptera pygmaea, Spodoptera sebghana, Spodoptera venosa

Other names and names in other languages (42)
  • Beet armyworm mothEnglish
  • Lesser army wormEnglish
  • Small mottled willowEnglish
  • صفصاف مرقش صغيرArabic
  • blýskavka červivcováCzech
  • Brithyn Bach TramorWelsh
  • Smalvinget ugleDanish
  • ZuckerrübeneuleGerman
  • Gardama asiáticaSpanish
  • uitöölaneEstonian
  • kulkuyökkönenFinnish
  • MjávongurFaroese
  • noctuelle exiguëFrench
  • גדודנית לפיגמהHebrew
  • Déli vándorbagolyHungarian
  • ulat daun bawangIndonesian
  • シロイチモジヨトウJapanese
  • 파밤나방Korean
  • vandreurteflyNorwegian Bokmål
  • FloridamotDutch
  • Światłówka naziemnicaPolish
  • Rosca-da-acelgaPortuguese
  • Помидорная совкаRussian
  • sivkavec stavikrvovýSlovak
  • svilnata pepelarkaSlovenian
  • smalvingat lövflySwedish
  • ผีเสื้อหนอนกระทู้หอมThai
  • Çizgili YaprakkurduTurkish
  • Совка помідорнаUkrainian
  • 甜菜斜紋夜蛾 (甜菜夜蛾)Chinese
  • عثة دودة الحشد البنجريةArabic
  • Brithion Bach TramorWelsh
  • Knöterich-SeidenglanzeuleGerman
  • Orangefleck-SeidenglanzeuleGerman
  • Gusano soldado asiáticoSpanish
  • Rosquilla verde asiáticaSpanish
  • légionnaire de la betteraveFrench
  • Noctuelle exiguë (La)French
  • Ulat GrayakIndonesian
  • vandresteppeflyNorwegian Bokmål
  • Florida-uilDutch
  • Совка малая наземнаяRussian

Catalogue of Life

Relatives of the beet armyworm

Other species in the same genus Spodoptera.

Tomato moth

Spodoptera littoralis

NoctuidaeNo free photo yet

Fireworm

Spodoptera eridania

NoctuidaeNo free photo yet

CompareBeet armyworm vs Fall armywormBeet armyworm vs African armywormBeet armyworm vs Tomato mothBeet armyworm vs Asian cotton leafworm

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

Is the beet armyworm an invasive species?

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the beet armyworm as introduced in 2 countries: Mexico and United States, but does not flag it as invasive in any of them.

What kind of animal is the beet armyworm?

The beet armyworm (Spodoptera exigua) belongs to the family Noctuidae in the order Lepidoptera.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-13. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Beet armyworm (Spodoptera exigua). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/beet-armyworm

MLA

“Beet armyworm (Spodoptera exigua).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/beet-armyworm.

BibTeX
@misc{beet_armyworm_2026,
  title = {Beet armyworm (Spodoptera exigua)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/beet-armyworm},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-13}
}