Identification
A large white with checkered wing pattern above.
Range
Entire United States and southern Canada, but spotty in the East, and often irratic in abundance toward the north.
Season
Year-round, depending upon climate and weather. Usually multiple-brooded with two or three broods in most of US but with continuous overlapping brooding some years in the Southwest. Usually rare or uncommon during winter even in mild climates.
Life Cycle
Larvae feed on Mustard Family (Brassicaceae), including Cabbage (Brassica oleraceae) as well as Caper Family (Capparidaceae) including Rocky Mountain Bee-plant (Cleome serrulata).
Remarks
Rather irregular in distribution in eastern North America, not seen every year in many localities, such as Piedmont region of North Carolina.
Can be extremely abundant, sometimes in the Southwest and Great Plains with thousands of individuals swarming flowers and puddles, and even coming to lights at night.
Can seem to disappear for a year or three during extreme drought, only to explode in numbers when rains come.
