That certainly looks like the Cabbage Whites P. rapae we raised last summer.

Different caterpillars attract different parasites -- there is usually a very specific host/parasite pairing. I have indeed seen seen a parasitized P. rapae cat before, but it was in Illinois. I can't speak to this area. However, the usual pattern with parasitism is that the host continues to live until the pupation is either complete or well underway.

That said, let him alone for another 24 hr and see whether he moves or munches at all. Sometimes, they stay still right before they shed their skins to go on to the next instar.

Jeff

Congrats on your CW caterpillar, Bob! Looks like a CW to me. If you find it moves in a "looping" fashion (doesn't have as many prolegs as a butterfly caterpillar, so it crawls in a looping fashion), it is the Cabbage Looper, a rather insignificant moth....or maybe not to some. It is hard for me to tell the difference between the two unless I see the way it moves. Loopers are always moths of some kind, many in the Noctuidae family.

My CWs like Cleome for a host plant, and they also use weedy species of pepperweed as well.

Susan

It's not hard to "entice" cabbage whites to lay eggs on your plants. I gave up on growing petunias because they destroyed the blooms every year. They're also known as the tobacco budworm and are a pest.

Deanna

My mistake - Susan, you're right - the budworms are from the cabbage moth.

Deanna

Any way you slice it, cabbage whites are still a non-native pest in the US.

Well, you're right, they are non-native. But, they are harbingers of spring for me, my granddaughter's favorite butterfly, and there are other butterflies that are considered pests that we all love, too - e.g., the Giant Swallowtail, or Orange Dog, that not too many Florida citrus farmers are fond of, for instance.

I grow Cleome which is one of their host plants. And....this is Larry_Gene's favorite butterfly, huh?

Susan

I never said I did not like CWs ;) Every time my kids have a pet praying mantis, we stand next to my neighbor's garden and catch CW after CW to feed to the praying mantis. If it were not for CWs, hunting for praying mantis food would be a lot more time consuming.

I don't think I knew GSTs had some farmers ticked off. I know that BSTs displease some farmers.

KC

Tolerance is a feature of the aging process. I entered the growing of a butterfly garden knowing that when one plants "host" plants, these plants will be consumed to some degree. I bear no animus toward the insect that feeds on other insects nor those that feed on other plants...they are just fulfilling their role in the garden of God. Every day I spend in the garden, I am surrounded by an endless supply of creatures that delight my eyes and they engage my mind (when I can get it jump-started). Mantids are voracious killing machines but beautiful to watch as they go about their day. The relationships that exist among those that eat and those that get eaten existed long before we did and without these existing "controls" we would certainly be overwhelmed. Neither am I bothered by their origin...given time, each will be integrated into the overall plan of God. Share with me a few pictures of the lowly Cabbage White who starts my season earlier than all others and maintains a presence throughout a long season.

Bob

Resting on the leaf of a rose.
{{gwi:459873}}

Nectaring on Salvia, "May Night".
{{gwi:459874}}

Color variation nectaring on Buddleia "white Profusion"
{{gwi:459875}}

Those cabbage whites are beautiful!
I've only seen them around here once or twice a good many years ago, and I got real excited seeing them - we don't get any type white butterfly here.
Sherry

Well said, Bob. And I love the photos. A well-balanced garden is the scene of many life and death struggles. I refer to my garden as my sanctuary--a place where God's presence is mightily felt.

Sandy

Bob, your pictures are wonderful. How do you get the lighting correct?

Jeff,I shoot with a Canon model 40D using a 100mm f/2.8 macro lens. The camera comes with optional operating modes...full manual, aperture priority and shutter priority. Of these options, I almost always select the aperture priority. This allows me to select an aperture opening that maximizes the depth of field since I am usually as close to the subject as I can get. In this operating mode, the cameras software and internal metering selects the proper shutter speed to create the proper lighting. The other consideration is that I ALWAYS use the SPOT metering selection. The other settings measure the focus and exposure at a number of spots in the framed area and then averages all the readings to arrive at the focus and exposure. When shooting subjects that are only a tiny segment of the photo area, (flowers, caterpillars, butterflies, etc.), the SPOT metering selection causes your camera to use ONLY the subject in the dead center of the frame, which in our case is usually a small and centered portion of the frame. I also shoot, using the EV (Exposure Value) on most of my shots. My EV settings are usually -1/3, -2/3, and -1. I shoot three exposures of almost everything I shoot, one at each EV setting. The final thing is that I shoot LOTS of photos...about 10,000 exposures per year. I don't keep any that I consider below standards. Finally, 99% of my photos are shot using a tripod. Elimination of camera "blur" will dramatically improve the quality of the results obtained.

Most digital cameras of today have all these options, and more, to assist in getting the shots to your liking. I also use Photoshop to edit my photos after they are downloaded to my computer...depending on the version, the exposure can be altered after it is shot to "Some" degree.

I hope this helps some.

Found a larger caterpillar today on another of the cabbage plants.

Bob

{{gwi:459876}}