| 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 about a dozen vertical ribs, and a height of about 1mm. The eggs 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, 13 October 2025)