@ayla_e
Coyoacán, CDMX
Pieris rapae
Cabbage Butterfly
The primary subjects are two small white butterflies identified as *Pieris rapae*. This identification is based on their size, the creamy-white coloration of their wings, and the distinct dark grey to black patches at the apex of the forewings. This pattern is characteristic of the Cabbage White butterfly, a cosmopolitan species known to occur in Mexico. The presence of two individuals together on the same leaf suggests a possible mating or courtship interaction.
Field notes
In Mexico City
Overview
Conservation
Not evaluated
Pieris rapae is a small-to-medium-sized butterfly species of the whites-and-yellows family Pieridae. It is known in Europe as the small white, in North America and the United Kingdom as the cabbage white or cabbage butterfly, on several continents as the small cabbage white, and in New Zealand as the white butterfly. The butterfly is recognizable by its white color with small black dots on its wings, and it can be distinguished from P. brassicae by the latter's larger size and black band at the tip of the forewings.
Read sourceObservation
Location
Coyoacán, CDMX
Observed
October, 10:47 AM
Weather
Cloudy, 66F
Shared
October 3, 2026
Also known as
Taxonomy
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Arthropoda
Class
Insecta
Order
Lepidoptera
Family
Pieridae
Genus
Pieris