Common Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus)

OTHER NAMES: Dark Clouded Yellow, Clouded Yellow

Latin Etymology: Colias (named after goddess Kōlias) croceus ("yellow/golden")

Adult Common Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus - unknown subspecies) at Donana, Spain - July 2011

Featured Subspecies: unknown
Length: ?  /  Wingspan: 52-62mm

UK Status: Least Concern / IUCN Red List: Not Yet Evaluated

The Common Clouded Yellow is one of the two large bright yellow butterflies found regularly in the UK along with the more greenish Brimstone.  It is fairly scarce in Britain, but is more common in Europe, and I found several around Donana in Southern Spain at a point in the year where only a few butterflies remained. 

Related Species:
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Pieridae
Genus: Colias
SUBSPECIES: C. c. chinensis, C. c. cremonae, C. c. edusina, C. c. helice

- Sighting Locations -

UNITED KINGDOM - An uncommon scarce annual migrant.

 - Butterflies seen at sites including The Lizard and Oare Marshes.

SPAIN - Common to locally abundant resident in appropriate habitat.

 - SEVILLE 2011 TRIP: Seen near El Rocio

Further Notes:  BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto .

Common Brimstone (Gonepteryx rhamni)

OTHER NAMES: Brimstone, Butter-coloured Fly
Latin Etymology: Gonepteryx ("angle wing") rhamni ("refers to buckthorn - a favoured host)

Adult Common Brimstone (subspecies G. r. rhamni) at Pitsford, Northants - August 2011

Featured Subspecies: Aricia agestis agestis
Length: 33mm  /  Wingspan: 52-60mm
UK Status: Least Concern / IUCN Red List: Not Yet Evaluated

A very distinctive sulphur yellow species of butterly related to the whites. As you can see in the picture, its wings mimick leaves making it harder to spot when it lands, but in the air the only species which it could really be mistaken for is the rarer clouded yellow. The identifying feature is definitly the toxic yellow colour, and it can be further differentiated from the clouded yellow by the distinctive wing points.

Related Species:
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Pieridae 
Genus: Gonepteryx
SUBSPECIES: G. r. rhamni, G. r. gravesi, G. r. carnipennis, G. r. concolor, G. r. kurdistana, G. r. meridionalis, G. r. mijanowskii, G. r. nana, G. r. tianschanica, G. r. transient

- Sighting Locations -

UNITED KINGDOM - A common resident species which is seen in Summer

 - Seen in Geddington and Pitsford amoung other sites

Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto .

Small White (Pieris rapae)

OTHER NAMES: Small Cabbage White, White Butterfly
Latin Etymology: Pieris (a Muse) rapae ("radish")

Adult Small White (subspecies P. r. rapae) at Geddington, Northants - July 2011

Featured Subspecies: Pieris rapae rapae
Length: ?  /  Wingspan: 32-47mm
UK Status: Least Concern / IUCN Red List: Not Yet Evaluated

As the name suggests, this is a small white butterfly. Possibly slightly less numerous than the large white (or at least, less noticable) it can be slightly difficult to differentiate from some of the other whites, so a passing familiarity with markings and sizes may be required for it and its nearest relatives. Colloquially known as the "cabbage white" this name refers to both this species and the large white.

Related Species:
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Pieridae
Genus: Pieris 
SUBSPECIES: P. r. rapae, P. r. crucivora, P. r. atomaria, P. r. eumorpha, P. r. leucosoma, P. r. mauretanica, P. r. napi, P. r. novangliae, P. r. orientalis

- Sighting Locations -

UNITED KINGDOM - A common resident species

 - Seen in Geddington, Brigstock and numerous other locations

Further Notes: BirdGuides, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto .

Green-veined White (Pieris napi)

OTHER NAMES: Mustard White
Latin Etymology: Pieris (a Muse) napi ("turnip" or "rapeseed")

Adult Green-veined White (subspecies P. n. sabellicae) at Geddington, Northants - June 2011

Featured Subspecies: Pieris napi sabellicae
Length: ?  /  Wingspan: 40-52mm
UK Status: Least Concern / IUCN Red List: Not Yet Evaluated

For the most part (with perhaps some of the Fritillaries excepted) Butterfly names seem to be a lot more straightforward than Bird names. A lot of them are really descriptive of what you need to look for - case to point - the green-veigned white is a white butterfly with green veins on the underside of its wings. Relatively common in wooded areas.

Related Species:
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Pieridae 
Genus: Pieris
SUBSPECIES: P. n. napi, P. n. sabellicae, P. n. britannica, P. n. thomsoni,  P. n. lusitanica, P. n. lappona, P. n. adakwubdam P. n. jesjuelai, P. n. meridionalis, P.n. segonzaci, P. n. maura, P. n. atlantis, P. n. flavescens, P. n. muchei, P. n. aponica, P. n. napoleon, P. n. montana, P. n. melaena

- Sighting Locations -

UNITED KINGDOM - A common resident species which is seen in Summer

 - Seen in Geddington and numerous other sites 

Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto .

Large White (Pieris brassicae)

OTHER NAMES: Cabbage White, Cabbage Butterfly, Great White Butterfly
Latin Etymology: Pieris (a Muse") brassicae ("cabbage")

Adult Large White (subspecies P. b. brassicae) at Geddington, Northants - July 2009

Featured Subspecies: Pieris brassicae brassicae
Length: ?  /  Wingspan: 58-63mm
UK Status: Least Concern / IUCN Red List: Least Concern

The Large White is one of the most common butterfly species in the UK and is . More often going by the name of "Cabbage White" (a name also applied to other white butterflies) for its habbit of voraciously eating cabbages while in caterpillar form. Picking out White Butterflies from other groups is of course very easy, but picking out the specific individual species can be a bit trickier.

Related Species:
Order: Lepidoptera 
Family: Pieridae 
Genus: Pieris
SUBSPECIES: P. b. brassicae, P. b. marghanita, P. b. ottonis, P. b. wollastoni

- Sighting Locations -

UNITED KINGDOM - A common resident species which is seen in Summer

 - Seen in Geddington and numerous other sites 

Further Notes: BirdGuides, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto .

Orange-tip (Anthocharis cardamines)

OTHER NAMES: Lady of the Woods
Latin Etymology: Anthocharis (?) cardamines ("cardamom")

Adult Orange Tip (subspecies A. c. britannica) at Geddington, Northants - May 2010

Featured Subspecies: Anthocharis cardamines britannica
Length: ?  /  Wingspan: 40-52mm
UK Status: Least Concern / IUCN Red List: Not Yet Evaluated

As far as males of the this species are concerned, the name pretty much says describes the appearance, Bright orange tips on white wings. The females however are much drabber- lacking the orange and making them look similar to other while butterflies. A widely distributed species found throughout temperate Eurasia.

Related Species:
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Pieridae
Genus: Anthocharis 
SUBSPECIES: A. c. cardamines, A. c. meridionalis, A. c. turritis, A. c. progressa, A. c. septentionalis, A. c. phoenissa A. c. alexandra, A. c. hibernica, A. c. koreana, A. c. kobayashii, A. c. issikii, A. c. hayashii, A. c. bambusaroides, A. c. britannica

- Sighting Locations -

UNITED KINGDOM - A common resident species which is seen in Summer

 - Seen in Geddington and numerous other sites 

Further Notes: BirdGuides, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto .

Gray-veined White (Pieris melete)

OTHER NAMES: Asian Green-veined White

Latin Etymology: Pieris (a Muse) melete (a Muse)

Adult Gray-veined White (subspecies P. m. melete) at Kamakura, Japan - November 2014

Featured Subspecies: Pieris melete melete
Length: ?  /  Wingspan: ?
NOT UK STATUS / IUCN Red List: Not Yet Evaluated

The Gray-veined white is seemingly another common species in Japan, a "white" species seen on the same headland overlooking Fuji as the Pea Blues.  As the trip in general was in November/December, only this single day was warm enough for butterflies so how common this species is in general is difficult to say, especially as this species isn't documented in any of my normal websites.

Related Species:
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Pieridae
Genus: Pieris
SUBSPECIES: P. m. alpestris, P. m. australis, P. m. juba, P. m. malayica, P. m. mandarina, P. m. melaina, P. m. melete, P. m. minor, P. m. orientis, P. m. pseudonapo, P. m. tomariana

 - Sighting Locations -

JAPAN - Japanese - スジグロシロチョウ  / Sujiguroshirochō ("Streaks Glo White Butterfly")

Locally common resident

 - TOKYO/HOKKAIDO 2014 TRIP: Several on the outskirts of Kamakura

Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto .

Common Sulphur (Colias philodice)

OTHER NAMES: Clouded Sulphur
Latin Etymology:  Colias (named after goddess Kōlias) philodice (a name of several figures from Greek Myth)

Adult Common Sulphur (Colias philodice) in Yukon - August 2024

Featured Subspecies: Unclear - possibly Colias philodice eriphyle
Wingspan: 3.2-5.4cm
NO UK STATUS / IUCN Red List: Not Yet Evaluated 

A widely distributed species of Butterfly found across the vast majority of the US and Canada, in the former being found in every state except Florida and Hawai'i. They have a wide range of host plants which include various species of vetch and clover, as well as other widely distributed species like trefoils, alfalfa and soybeans. Despite the name, they do also ocur in a white morph which may make them resemble white pieridae butterflies.

Related Species:
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Pieridae
Genus: Colias
SUBSPECIES: C. p. eriphyle, C. p. guatemalena, C. p. philodice, C. p. vitabunda

 - Sighting Locations -

CANADA -Present everywhere but the High Tundra
  - CHICAGO TO ALASKA ROADTRIP 2024: - Seen in Yukon

Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto

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Cloudless Sulphur (Phoebis sennae)

OTHER NAMES: N/A
Latin Etymology: Phoebis (bright/pure) sennae (from Senna - a major host plant genus)

Adult Cloudless Sulphur (Phoebis sennae) at Tarcoles, Costa Rica - November 2025

Featured Subspecies: Phoebis sennae sennae
Length: 5.5-7cm  /  Wingspan: 4.8-6.5cm
NO UK STATUS / IUCN Red List: Not Yet Evaluated 

A widely distributed species of butterfly found from Canada to Argentina, where it has a wide variety of habitats and food plants. It favours open and semi open areas, while its foodplants include corda, bougainvillea, cardinal flower, hibiscus, morning glory and sennas. It was formerly credited with having a third subspecies - Phoebis marcellina, but this has now been elavated to full species status as the Marcellina Sulphur.
 
Related Species: 
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Pieridae
Genus: Phoebis
SUBSPECIES: P. s. amphitrite, P. s. sennae
 

- Sighting Locations -
COSTA RICA 
A widespread, common resident
- COSTA RICA 2025 TRIP: Seen at Tarcoles 

Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto

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