Wing span: 36–48 mm
Flight period: in two or three generations from March to October
Larval host plants: species from the family Brassicaceae (Brassicaceae)
The small white (Pieris rapae or Artogeia rapae) is similar in color and pattern to the cabbage white (Pieris brassicae), but is much smaller. The basic color of the upperside of its wings is white with a slight grayish tinge near the body. The outer upper corner of the forewings and the spots on the wings are black. Both sexes have a black spot on the upper edge of the hindwings' upperside, and two spots in the middle of the undersides of the forewings, while males on the upperside of the forewings have one, females have two black spots. The underside of the hindwings in the small white is yellowish with a slight grayish tint; the underside of the forewings is yellowish only in the upper outer corner of the wing, the rest is white.
The small white is still one of the most common diurnal butterflies here and in Europe. We find it from sea to high mountains, where, as in the far north of Scandinavia, there are migratory individuals.
Adults can be observed in virtually all habitats where a crucifer thrives. The larvae can cause substantial damage in plantings of cultivated crucifers, such as cabbage or kale, but the excessive use of pesticides in recent decades has taken a heavy toll on their populations...
