This is our most recently-discovered butterfly, being almost identical to the Wood White and originally described as Réal's Wood White. However, in 2011 Réal's Wood White was itself split, resulting in another new species - the Cryptic Wood White, a species that is found across Ireland. This species share many characteristics with the Wood White, in terms of both appearance and behaviour. Like the Wood White, adults always rest with their wings closed although, in flight, the male can be distinguished from the female by a black spot at the tip of the forewings that is greatly reduced in the female. This species is only found in Ireland in the British Isles, where it is widespread. Current evidence suggests that there is no overlap in distribution between the Wood White and Cryptic Wood White; the Wood White being confined to areas of the Burren limestone district in Clare and South-east Galway in the west of Ireland.
Subspecies: Leptidea juvernica juvernica
The nominate subspecies was first defined in Williams (1946) (type locality: Ireland). The population in the British Isles is represented by this subspecies. Although more analysis needs to be done, it is suspected that (like its close relative, the Wood White) males of any summer brood have darker wing spots than those of the spring brood, whose spots are greyer in colour, and that females of any summer brood are slightly smaller than those of the spring brood.
Adults fly throughout May and into the first half of June. There may be a partial second brood in good years.
Subspecies: Leptidea juvernica juvernica
The chart(s) above have been correlated with the phenology plot below, taken from the UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme. The blue line gives average counts over the full data set from 1976 to date, and the red line gives the average for the last year.
Unlike the Wood White, this butterfly is found in more-open habitats, such as scrubby grassland, abandoned quarries, hedgerows and roadside verges. Foodplants include various vetches and trefoils.
Males can be found patrolling for females, rarely stopping to rest or feed, especially in sunny weather. On dull days, the butterfly will rest on the underside of a leaf with its wings closed and, when disturbed, will fly into thick undergrowth. Like the Wood White, the courtship of this butterfly is an amazing spectacle. Male and female face each other with wings closed and intermittently flash open their wings. At the same time, the male waves his proboscis and white-tipped antennae either side of the female’s head. If the female is receptive to these signals, the female bends her abdomen toward the male and the pair mate, staying coupled for around 30 minutes.
The superbly-camouflaged larva feeds by first eating the tips of the finest shoots, before working its way down the plant. The larva moults 4 times in total.
The pupa is primarily green, with the wing edges and veins coloured a beautiful pink. It is attached to the stem by a silken girdle and the cremaster. This species hibernates as a pupa.
The relatively-recent discovery of this butterfly as a separate species from the Wood White has led to difficulties in understanding its true status. However, based on historical evidence, it is believed that this butterfly has been lost from south County Cork, north County Dublin and County Meath. In Northern Ireland, this butterfly is considered a priority species.
The species description provided here has been derived from the author's own observations and the information contained in the following works:
Asher (2001). Asher, J., Warren, M., Fox, R., Harding, P., Jeffcoate, G. and Jeffcoate, S.: The Millennium Atlas of Butterflies in Britain and Ireland. 2001.
Fox (2006). Fox, R., Asher, J., Brereton, T., Roy, D. and Warren, M.: The State of Butterflies in Britain and Ireland. 2006.
Frohawk (1914). Frohawk, F.W.: A Natural History of British Butterflies. 1914.
Howarth (1973). Howarth, T.G.: South's British Butterflies. 1973.
Nash (2012). Nash, D., Boyd, T. and Hardiman, D.: Ireland's Butterflies: A Review. 2012.
Riley (2007). Riley, A.M.: British and Irish Butterflies: The Complete Identification, Field and Site Guide to the Species, Subspecies and Forms. 2007.
![Reals Wood White - imago - Rosslare, Wexford - Unknown date [Adrian Riley]](phpBB/gallery/images/upload/b5ed2f391e92b4c1852e1f32e5c70480.jpg "Reals Wood White - imago - Rosslare, Wexford - Unknown date [Adrian Riley]")
![Reals Wood White - imago - Northern Ireland - Jun-04 [Mike Duffy]](phpBB/gallery/images/upload/c9fb495bc6e71f7c4d66db4016404f69.jpg "Reals Wood White - imago - Northern Ireland - Jun-04 [Mike Duffy]")
![Reals Wood White - imago - Montiaghs Moss - 28-May-07 (2) [Allan Sumner]](phpBB/gallery/images/upload/926b0ed77713acb6187f06641d5299e5.jpg "Reals Wood White - imago - Montiaghs Moss - 28-May-07 (2) [Allan Sumner]")
![Reals Wood White - imago - nr Craigavon, County Armagh - 12-Jun-06 (6) [Graham Smith]](phpBB/gallery/images/upload/d0ef54ae115c63a27e5c4cd35e9e7ee2.jpg "Reals Wood White - imago - nr Craigavon, County Armagh - 12-Jun-06 (6) [Graham Smith]")
![Reals Wood White - imago - nr Craigavon, County Armagh - 12-Jun-06 [Graham Smith]](phpBB/gallery/images/upload/4dcb6931185efb16e0bd0eff6e564787.jpg "Reals Wood White - imago - nr Craigavon, County Armagh - 12-Jun-06 [Graham Smith]")
