Imagery
Arthropods
This is a Cabbage White (Pieris rapae), the most common butterfly in our neighborhood. I’ve taken tons of pictures of these fellows, and this is by far the best.
I had at first thought that this was a male Checkered White (Pontia protodice). The males look very similar to the Cabbage Whites, but they’re not even in the same genus. Just shows you how much I know about entomology (but you knew that already).
Anyway, these butterflies are a horrible pest, as the caterpillars subsist on cabbage leaves. They originated in Europe, but have now spread to North American and Asia (at least East Asia) as well.
A slightly different crop of the original is available as the July 2004 wallpaper.
(14 July 2004)