266 



THE STUDY OF INSECTS 



Fig. 462. — Pieris rapcr. 



The cabbage-butterfly, Pieris rapes. — The wings of this butterfly 



are dull white above, occasionally tinged 

 with yellowish, especially in the female; 

 below, the apex of the fore wings, and 

 the entire surface of the hind wings are 

 pale lemon yellow. In the female there 

 are two spots on the outer part of the 

 fore wing besides the black tip, in the 

 male only one (Fig. 462). 



There is considerable variation' in the 

 intensity of the black markings, and in 

 the extent of the yellow tinge of the wings. 

 The larva of this species (Fig. 

 461) feeds principally on cabbage, but 

 it also attacks many other cruciferous plants. Its color is the green of 

 the cabbage-leaf, with a narrow, greenish, lemon-yellow dorsal band, and 

 a narrow, interrupted stigmatal band of the same color. The body is 

 clothed with very fine short hairs. 



Pieris rapes is without doubt the most injurious to agriculture of all 

 our species of butterflies. It is an introduced species, but has spread over 

 the greater part of this country. As it is three-brooded in the North and 

 more in the South, it is present nearly the entire season, so that it needs 

 to be fought constantly. 



The checkered white, Pieris protodice. — The two sexes of this species 

 differ greatly in appearance, the female being much more darkly marked 

 than the male. The wings are white, marked above with grayish-brown. 

 There is a bar of this color at the end of the discal cell ; beyond this there 

 is in the male a row of three more or less distinct spots, and in the fe- 

 male an almost continuous band of spots. Besides these there is in the 

 female a row of triangular spots on the outer margin of both fore and 

 hind wings, and on the hind wings a submarginal zigzag bar. 



The larva of this species is colored with alternating stripes of bright 

 golden yellow and dark greenish-purple, upon which are numerous black 

 spots. It feeds upon cabbage and other cruciferous plants, and occurs in 

 nearly the whole of the United States. 



THE ORANGE-TIPS 



These, like the butterflies comprising the preceding group, are white, 

 marked with black. Their most characteristic feature is the presence on 

 the lower surface of the hind wings of a 

 greenish network, or a marbled green mot- 

 tling. This usually shows through the wing so 

 as to appear as a dark shade when the wings 

 are seen from above (Fig. 463) . Many species 

 have a conspicuous orange spot on the apical 

 portion of the front wings. This has sug- 

 gested the common name orange-tips for the 

 group. But it should be remembered that 

 some species lack this mark, and that in 

 some others it is confined to the males. 

 Most of our species are western. The two following occur in the East. 



Fig. 463. — Eucklte ausonide 



