Eastern Bath White (Pontia edusa)
Eastern Bath White (Pontia edusa)
Eastern Bath White (Pontia edusa)
Eastern Bath White (Pontia edusa)
Eastern Bath White (Pontia edusa)
Eastern Bath White (Pontia edusa)

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Eastern Bath White (Pontia edusa)


Photo © Peter Eeles
FamilyPieridae
SubfamilyPierinae
GenusPontia
Speciesedusa
Authority(Fabricius, 1777)
English NameEastern Bath White
European Red List 2010Least Concern (LC)
EU 27 Red List 2010Least Concern (LC)
European Red List 2025Least Concern (LC)
EU 27 Red List 2025Least Concern (LC)
Habitats Directive
Bern Convention
CITES

Description

The Bath White complex has been split into two species in the 1980s, P. daplidice (LINNAEUS, 1758), which mainly occurs in the Western Mediterranean, and P. edusa (FABRICIUS, 1777), which is distributed over the rest of Europe. However, these two species cannot be distinguished in the field. Their life cycles are also very similar. The adult butterflies are very mobile, fast flying and migrate northwards and westwards in warm years. They occur in warm, stony places; often disturbed ground, such as road verges, abandoned agricultural land or quarries. The females lay their eggs on such crucifers as mustards (Sinapis spp.), Alyssum spp., and also on mignonettes (Reseda spp.). The caterpillars feed mainly on the flowers and seeds. Pupation takes place on the stalk of the foodplant. These species have two or more broods a year and hibernate as pupae.

Distribution

Albania / Austria / Belarus / Belgium (Irregular Vagrant) / Belgium: Flanders (Regionally Extinct) / Belgium: Wallonia (Irregular Vagrant) / Bosnia and Herzegovina / Bulgaria / Croatia / Czechia / Denmark (Regular Migrant) / Estonia (Irregular Vagrant) / Finland (Regular Migrant) / France: Corsica (Possibly Present) / Germany / Greece / Greece: Mainland / Greece: East Aegean Islands / Greece: Kirti (Crete) / Hungary / Italy / Italy: Mainland / Italy: Sicily / Latvia / Lithuania / Luxembourg (Irregular Vagrant) / North Macedonia / Malta (Possibly Present) / Moldova / Montenegro / Netherlands (Irregular Vagrant) / Norway (Irregular Vagrant) / Poland / Romania / European Russia / San Marino / Serbia / Serbia: Serbia / Serbia: Kosovo / Slovakia / Slovenia / Sweden / Switzerland / European Türkiye / Ukraine /

Larval Foodplants

#OrderFamilyGenusSpeciesVernacular NameLink
1BrassicalesBrassicaceaeBerteroaincanaHoary Alison
2BrassicalesBrassicaceaeBrassicanapusOil-seed Rape (see ssp.)
3BrassicalesBrassicaceaeDiplotaxistenuifoliaPerennial Wall-rocket
4BrassicalesBrassicaceaeErysimumcheiranthoidesTreacle-mustard
5BrassicalesBrassicaceaeLepidiumcampestreField Pepperwort
6BrassicalesBrassicaceaeLepidiumruderaleNarrow-leaved Pepperwort
7BrassicalesBrassicaceaeTeesdalianudicaulisShepherd's Cress
8BrassicalesResedaceaeResedaalbaWhite Mignonette
9BrassicalesResedaceaeResedaluteaWild Mignonette
10BrassicalesResedaceaeResedaluteolaWeld