| ADULT |
Wingspan - 40 - 52mm. The creamy white uppersides
are dusted with fine dark scales and the forewings have a distinct black
tip. The male usually has a dark spot towards the centre of the
forewing whereas the female has two. On the front edge of the
hindwing there is a black spot. The undersides of the hindwings
are a creamy pale yellow which are lined with black scales that when
mixed with the background give a greenish effect, hence the vernacular
name. The undersides of the forewings are white with a creamy pale
yellow tip |
| CHRYSALIS |
19mm. Green or pale brown and attached by a silk
girdle within thick vegetation. |
| LARVA |
25mm. Two tone green (darker above) with yellow
spots around the spiracles where it feeds on leaves and stems of
crucifers. |
| EGG |
Creamy yellow, bottle-shaped. Located on crucifers
such as charlock, cuckooflower and garlic mustard. Hatching time
within 7 days. |
| BEHAVIOUR |
Fluttery in flight with incessant feeding, visits are
occasionally made to puddles where minerals are taken in. Will fly
even on dull days providing air temperature is high enough. |
| HABITAT |
Hedgerows, woodland margins and rides, damp meadows,
riverbanks. |
| FLIGHT PERIOD |
April - September in two separate broods. |
