Black Cutworm vs Orange-legged Robberfly

Agrotis ipsilon compared with Dioctria oelandica

Key Differences

• Black Cutworm is Least Concern while Orange-legged Robberfly is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Black Cutworm	Orange-legged Robberfly
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Insecta (Insects)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Diptera (Diptera)
Family	Noctuidae	Asilidae
Genus	Agrotis	Dioctria
Species	Agrotis ipsilon	Dioctria oelandica

Evolutionary Relationship

Black Cutworm and Orange-legged Robberfly share a common ancestor at the Class level: Insecta. (Insects)

Conservation Status

Black Cutworm

LC — Least Concern

Orange-legged Robberfly

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Black Cutworm	Orange-legged Robberfly
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Black Cutworm

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 6 distinct biome types spanning the Afrotropic and Palearctic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (7 countries), Asia (Taiwan), Europe (5 countries), North America (Canada, United States), and South America (Chile).

Orange-legged Robberfly

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Black Cutworm

The Black Cutworm (Agrotis ipsilon) is a species in the genus Agrotis. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 6 distinct biome types spanning the. Widely distributed across Africa (7 countries), Asia (Taiwan), Europe (5 countries), North America (Canada, United Stat...

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden