A very common butterfly in Dorset. With its relation, the Small White, dubbed ‘cabbage whites’ for their caterpillar’s love of munching the brassicas in gardens.
Where to see
- Habitat: Can be found almost anywhere, but especially where its caterpillars' food plants are cultivated or grow.
- Caterpillar foodplants: Brassicas: oil-seed rape, cabbages, brussel sprouts. Also nasturtiums. In the wild may also use wild mignonette and sea-kale.
- Best places: Widespread, but especially look in gardens where brassicas or nasturtiums are growing, allotments and fields of oil-seed rape.
Distribution map
Large White was recorded from these 1km squares in Dorset (2015-19).
- Key:
- 1 record
- 2-9 records
- 10+ records
When to see
Can be seen between February and November, but the first brood emerges in late April and May. The second, much larger, brood is on the wing from July to September, and there may even be a third brood.
Sightings by month (last 5 years)*
This year and last*
What to look for
A large butterfly, but often ignored as ‘just a cabbage white’. Stop and look at it, though, and it is an attractive insect, and there is some evidence that it a source of a protein with anti-cancer properties.
The Large White makes use of toxins for protection. The eggs are laid with a small dose of mustard oil (cabbages are members of the mustard family), on plants with produce further toxins which are safely ingested by the caterpillars, and which make them less attractive to predation by birds. Whether your chickens will eat the Large White caterpillars from your cabbages seems to be uncertain: some people say they will, some say the won’t.
The main species with which it can be confused is the Small White, which is usually smaller, though that’s not much help unless they are seen together! Look for the markings on the top side of the forewings and you will see that the Large White has a black tip which extends down the side of the wing, while the Small White just has a lesser black mark only across the top of the wingtip.
Don’t think that the spots on the wings are indicative of species – they actually indicate the sex of the butterfly. Males have little or no spot, while females have much more pronounced spots.
There is a variation in the density of the black markings between the first brood in the spring. The earlier males have greyer wingtip markings and the females are generally lighter.
It is said it likes to nectar on white flowers, but it will accept a wide range of colours, as can be seen in the photos below.
This is a butterfly whose chrysalis you may see, as the caterpillars wander away from their food plants to pupate, and will climb up the sides of buildings and attach themselves under ledges.
Photo gallery
Click thumbnails to view full-size images.
Large White male. Note the black wingtip mark extends down the wing, showing it is a Large, not Small White. Photo: Lyn Pullen
SMALL WHITE male. Note the black marking on the wingtip does not go down the side of the wings. Photo: Ken Dolbear
Large White. You can tell this is a male by the lack of spots on the wings.
Large White. You can tell this is female from the black spots on the wings. Photo: Ken Dolbear
Large White male with the paler wing tips of the first brood. Photo: Ken Dolbear
Large White male, showing creamy underwing giving good camouflage. Photo: Ken Dolbear.
Large White female, showing creamy underwing with haze of tiny grey spots. Photo: Ken Dolbear
Large White caterpillars on Nasturtium. Photo: Lyn Pullen
Large White chrysalis. Photo: Gary Holderness
Large White eggs. Photo: Dave Law