Margined White (Pieris marginalis Scudder)
Wing span: 1 1/2 - 2 1/4 inches (3.8 - 5.7 cm).
Identification: Summer form is pure white above and below; spring form has black-tipped upper forewing. Underside of hindwing and apex of forewing have veins edged with yellow-green or gray-green.
Life history: Males patrol for receptive females. Eggs are laid singly on underside of host plant leaves on which the caterpillars feed. Chrysalis hibernates.
Flight: Two flights from February-September in the West.
Caterpillar hosts: Various native plants in the mustard (Brassicaceae) family.
Adult food: Nectar from flowers of the mustard family and other plants.
Habitat: Forests, meadows, deciduous woods, streamsides.
Range: Southern British Columbia and Alberta south to central California and southern New Mexico; east to eastern Wyoming and eastern Colorado.
