Pieris rapae
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
Pieris rapae is a small-to-medium-sized butterfly species of the whites-and-yellows family Pieridae. It is known in Europe as the small white, in North America and the United Kingdom as the cabbage white or cabbage butterfly, on several continents as the small cabbage white, and in New Zealand as the white butterfly. The butterfly is recognizable by its white color with small black dots on its wings, and it can be distinguished from P. brassicae by the latter's larger size and black band at the tip of the forewings.
The caterpillar of this species, often referred to as the "imported cabbageworm", is a pest to crucifer crops such as cabbage, kale, bok choy and broccoli. Pieris rapae is widespread in Europe and Asia; it is believed to have originated in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Europe and to have spread across Eurasia thanks to the diversification of brassicaceous crops and the development of human trade routes.
In appearance it looks like a smaller version of the large... Wikipedia →
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Small White sighting in Nanjing on a given day, based on 27 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 63rd most-seen of the 272 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May to July
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Small White in Nanjing on a given day, against under 5% in April, August and November–February, the lowest months. Those are among Nanjing's wettest months, with about 170 mm of rain a month against 40 mm in December.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Small White sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
101st of 125
Of the 125 cities where we can rate Small White sightings, Nanjing ranks 101st at about 10%. The best odds are in Hanoi (Vietnam, about 40%), Ankara (Turkey, about 30%) and Daejeon (South Korea, about 30%).
Same genus: Pieris
The closest relatives of the Small White that you can see in Nanjing (genus Pieris, Garden Whites) are Pieris latouchei (about 30%) and Indian Cabbage White (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Small White is recorded against all the insects logged in Nanjing (27 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
