CreatureData

Cotton bollworm

Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner, 1808)

Status not recordedbutterflies and moths

The cotton bollworm (Helicoverpa armigera) is a species in the family Noctuidae, order Lepidoptera.

No freely licensed photo yet

Quick facts about the cotton bollworm

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 cotton bollworm live?

Not recorded

Where has it been introduced?

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the cotton bollworm as introduced in 4 countries.

  1. Australia
  2. Denmark
  3. Japan
  4. United Arab Emirates

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 cotton bollworm 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 cotton bollworm classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumArthropoda
  3. classInsecta
  4. orderLepidoptera
  5. familyNoctuidae
  6. genusHelicoverpa
  7. SpeciesHelicoverpa armigera (Hübner, 1808)

Synonyms Agrochola insularis, Chloridea armigera, Chloridea rufa, Helicoverpa armigera conferta, Helicoverpa conferta, Helicoverpa insularis, Helicoverpa pulverosa, Helicoverpa rama, Helicoverpa uniformis, Heliothis armigera, Heliothis conferta, Heliothis fusca, Heliothis guidellii, Heliothis pulverosa, Heliothis rama, Heliothis uniformis, Noctua armigera, Noctua barbara

Other names and names in other languages (53)
  • African bollworm mothEnglish
  • American Boll-wormEnglish
  • Chickpea pod borer mothEnglish
  • Corn earworm mothEnglish
  • Cotton bollworm mothEnglish
  • Legume pod borer mothEnglish
  • Old World bollwormEnglish
  • Scarce bordered strawEnglish
  • Scarce bordered straw mothEnglish
  • Scarce bordered straw or Old World bollwormEnglish
  • دودة أذن الذرةArabic
  • Barrinador del tomàquetCatalan
  • černopáska bavlníkováCzech
  • Gwyfyn Melynwellt PlaenWelsh
  • Kriger træk-ugleDanish
  • ResedaeuleGerman
  • Oruga del tomate y de la mazorcaSpanish
  • puuvillaöölaneEstonian
  • hukkavaellusyökkönenFinnish
  • ArmigèreFrench
  • תנשמית האביבHebrew
  • GyapottokbagolyHungarian
  • Ulat BuahIndonesian
  • ElicoverpaItalian
  • オオタバコガJapanese
  • 왕담배나방Korean
  • Gelsvapilkis saulinukasLithuanian
  • pestfagerflyNorwegian Bokmål
  • katoendaguilDutch
  • słonecznica orężówkaPolish
  • Совка хлопковаяRussian
  • sivkavec konopnýSlovak
  • trnasta sončarkaSlovenian
  • Кукурузна совицаSerbian
  • bomullsknölflySwedish
  • ผีเสื้อหนอนเจาะสมอฝ้ายThai
  • YeşilkurtTurkish
  • Совка бавовниковаUkrainian
  • 番茄夜蛾Chinese
  • دودة اللوز القطنيةArabic
  • Barrinadora de la TomàtigaCatalan
  • Gwyfynod Melynwellt PlaenWelsh
  • Baumwoll-KapseleuleGerman
  • Baumwoll-SonneneuleGerman
  • BaumwolleuleGerman
  • BaumwollkapselwurmGerman
  • MaiskolbenwurmGerman
  • Schädliche MaiseuleGerman
  • Armigère (L')French
  • Noctuelle de la tomateFrench
  • brunaktigt knölflySwedish
  • Pamuk KurduTurkish
  • 棉鈴實夜蛾Chinese

Catalogue of Life

Relatives of the cotton bollworm

Other species in the same genus Helicoverpa.

Bollworm

Helicoverpa zea

NoctuidaeNo free photo yet

CompareCotton bollworm vs BollwormCotton bollworm vs Cape gooseberry budwormCotton bollworm vs Native budwormCotton bollworm vs Minute noctuid moth

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

Is the cotton bollworm an invasive species?

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the cotton bollworm as introduced in 4 countries: Australia, Denmark, Japan and United Arab Emirates, but does not flag it as invasive in any of them.

What kind of animal is the cotton bollworm?

The cotton bollworm (Helicoverpa armigera) belongs to the family Noctuidae in the order Lepidoptera.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-14. How this page is put together.

Embed a card for this animal on your own site

Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.

Preview the card

APA

CreatureData. (2026). Cotton bollworm (Helicoverpa armigera). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/cotton-bollworm

MLA

“Cotton bollworm (Helicoverpa armigera).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/cotton-bollworm.

BibTeX
@misc{cotton_bollworm_2026,
  title = {Cotton bollworm (Helicoverpa armigera)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/cotton-bollworm},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-14}
}