The relationship between the catch of maleSpodoptera litura(F.) moths in sex pheromone‐baited traps and the number of egg‐masses in groundnut crop at the International Crops Research Institute for Semi‐Arid Tropics Centre Patancheru, India was examined during the post‐rainy season of 1983. Significant positive correlations were found between the number of egg‐masses and the total number of male moths caught during the 7 days preceding the egg‐mass count. 75% of the variance in the egg‐mass counts and pheromone trap catches could be accounted for by the regression.