Checkered White (University of Arizona Pollinator Field Guide)

Checkered White

Pontia protodice

Who am I? ²

Hellooo! I am Pontia protodice, the Checkered white or Southern cabbage butterfly. As implied by my name, we LOVE cabbages! Maybe not just cabbages, actually. We also enjoy feeding on broccoli and horseradish... but cabbages are the main thing. We tend to be pests when our numbers explode on cultivated crop lands, so chemical pesticides or the bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis is used to keep us under control. But hey, I don't blame them. The kids just love to chow down on the leaves of Brassicaceae plants, which is also what distinguishes us from the Cabbage white butterfly (Pieris rapae). I sure hope you don't have to experience large number of us feasting on your crops...

Quick facts ²

Common name: Checkered white

Scientific name:Pontia protodice (Boisduval & Leconte 1830)

Family: Pieridae - Pierinae

Characteristics:

Wingspan: 1 1/2 - 2 1/2 inches (3.8 - 6.3 cm)
Usually sexually dimorphic on upperside, where females have darker markings
Upperside: mostly white with charcoal grey checkered patterns towards edges
Male underside is white with a charcoal grey checkered pattern
Female underside is similar to males', but have yellow-tan markings on veins

Host plant: Prefers mustards (Brassicaceae) such as cabbage (Brassica oleraceae). Also likes capers (Capparidaceae) such as the Rocky Mountain Bee-plant (Cleome serrulata)

Nectar plant: Variety of flowers, including mustards, composites, and legumes

Distribution: Present in all of United States, S Canada, and N Mexico

Flight times: Typically year-round except for areas that experience the cooler, winter months. Can be seen from March - November. See seasonality: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/59119-Pontia-protodice

Read more about me here: http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/veg/leaf/checkered_white.htm

Where can you find me on campus? ²

Since adult Checkered whites visit a variety of flowers, they may be spotted at flowers near Old Main, the Women's Plaza, one of the pollinator gardens around Biological Sciences West, or other flower patches around campus. More observations and information is needed to make better predictions of where they might be found in the future.