Large white butterfly (pieris brassicae)

This is probably the most common butterfly we see at Scotswood Garden. We usually spot them from spring all the way through until the autumn. Along with the small white butterfly, it is sometimes called the "cabbage white butterfly". Any gardener will know that this is because it lays its eggs on cabbages so that its caterpillar can munch their way through the cabbage leaves when they hatch out.

They are easy to identify with their white wings. The females have black spots on their wings whereas the males do not.