| Striated Pearl-white (previously known as Pieris parthia) PIERINAE, PIERIDAE, PAPILIONOIDEA | (donherbisonevans@yahoo.com) and Stella Crossley |
(Photo: courtesy of
Wes Jenkinson)
|
| Striated Pearl-white (previously known as Pieris parthia) PIERINAE, PIERIDAE, PAPILIONOIDEA | (donherbisonevans@yahoo.com) and Stella Crossley |
(Photo: courtesy of
Wes Jenkinson)
The Caterpillar of this species is green with a white dorsal line, and sometimes some dark red spots. It has a forked tail.
It feeds on various species of Capers ( Capparis, CAPPARACEAE ) including :
The pupa is also green with white stripes, and has a pointed head. It is attached to a twig or leaf of the foodplant, and has a length of about 1.5 cms.
The upper surfaces of the wings of the adult butterfly are white with dark brown wingtips. but the undersides are white with a yellow patch by the body. The butterfly has a wingspan of about 3.5 cms.
The eggs are barrel-shaped, with 13 vertical ribs, and a height of about 1mm. They are initially white, but develop pink markings. The eggs are laid singly, usually on the uppersides of foodplant leaves.
The species occurs in
Further reading :
Michael F. Braby,
Butterflies of Australia,
CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne 2000, vol. 1, pp. 311-312.
William Chapman Hewitson,
Pieris II,
Illustrations of new species of exotic butterflies,
London, Volume 1 (1853), p.31,, and also
Plate 17, figs. 12-13.
Wesley Jenkinson,
Life history notes on the Striated Pearl-white, Elodina parthia
(Hewitson, 1853) Lepidoptera,: Pieridae,
Butterflies and Other Invertebrates Club,
Metamorphosis Australia,
Issue 62 (September 2011), pp. 1, 10-12.
 caterpillar |  butterflies |  Lepidoptera |  moths |  caterpillar |
(updated 1 May 2009, 24 July 2024)