The beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua (Hubner), oviposited on all phenological stages of field-grown cotton, Gossypium hirsulum L. Most of the egg masses (91.8%) were deposited on the lower surface of leaves. In general, the highest number of egg masses were located on fully expanded leaves in the middle to terminal portions of the plant. Average main stem node location of egg masses was
... [Show full abstract] approximately one-third of the way down from the plant terminal. Egg mass distribution was similar on caged and uncaged cotton plants. With the increase in number of nodes on the main stem, the average location of egg masses shifted towards the terminal at a rate of 0.65 nodes per main stem node increase. Egg masses found in the lower strata of the plant were located on outer branch node location.