Green-striped White

This butterfly belonging to the family Pieridae has a very wide distribution extending from the Iberian Peninsula and North Africa to the Middle east, Iran and Baluchistan. It has also been recorded in Ethiopia. It is a very common species in the northern Mediterranean region, but has also been recorded in the Jordan valley. The butterfly is white coloured and small sized with a wing-span of 38-42 mm. This species looks very similar to the other white Pieridae butterflies with the typical pattern of black spots and markings on the upperside of the wings against a white coloured background. It is a very active butterfly and therefore while the identification during flight is quite difficult, even when the butterfly sits on the flowers for a few seconds to suck nectar, it is not easy to identify. The only way to identify is when the underside of the wings are observed. The lower side of the hindwings have a pattern of thick yellowish-green coloured stripes against a white background. This similar pattern is also on the tips of the underside of the forewings, towards the outer apical edge. A single black medium sized spot is also seen on the lower side of each forewing. This unique tiger pattern on the underside of the hindwings is the only key to externally identify the butterfly species. This species has only one generation in the year, emerging during the spring season and the peak period of emergence is in April. The adults are mostly seen in flight from November until April or early May. The eggs are laid singly on the underside of the leaves of the hostplants which mostly belong to the family Brassicaceae. The caterpillars are yellowish green in colour with black stripes running along the length of the body and two white stripes on either side of the body. During the hot summer months, the adults mostly remain in dormant phase inside the pupa !! In Palestine, it is a common species and has been widely recorded in the Bethlehem area. IUCN conservation status – Common