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Luminary Oddities · Natural history & art
Appias albina
Lepidoptera / Pieridae
Appias albina is a pierid butterfly with geographically variable colour forms. In northern Australia, its breeding cycle follows the summer monsoon and fresh growth of the larval host, Drypetes deplanchei.
Read the species account
The northern Australian study reports a life cycle of approximately four weeks. Adult appearance coincided with the annual flush of host foliage at the start of the summer monsoon; the flight season lasted about two months. [3]
Caterpillars in the northern Australian study fed on the foliage of Drypetes deplanchei. The plant’s fresh monsoonal growth supplies the larval resource during the local breeding period. [3]
The three female forms in the northern Australian study are sex-limited colour variation within the same taxon: white, yellow and intermediate females occur in A. albina albina. [3]
The Appias revision places the original material associated with albina in Ambon. The modern account retains the species in Appias, subgenus Catophaga. [2]
The illustration emphasizes pale wing fields, narrow dark margins and the subtle yellow near the body.
Keep the enclosure closed and display it in indirect light, away from heat and damp conditions. Handle the frame by its edges and clean only its exterior according to the maker’s instructions.
Are all females the same colour? Northern Australian A. albina albina includes white, yellow and intermediate female forms. [3]
How long is the local breeding cycle? The Australian study reports development in about four weeks during a monsoonal flight period of approximately two months. [3]
The Appias revision addresses classification and nomenclature. The northern Australian paper documents female colour variation, the larval host and seasonal development; Naturalis supplies a dated Philippine specimen record. [2][3][5]
University of Florida BioCosmos · Accessed 2026-10-09
Yata and colleagues; Systematic Entomology, 2010 · Accessed 2026-10-09
Braby, Lane and Weir; Entomological Science 13(2):258–268 (2010), Australian National University research record · Accessed 2026-10-09
Michael F. Braby and collaborators; regional field atlas, DBCA library copy · Accessed 2026-10-09
Naturalis Biodiversity Center · Accessed 2026-10-09
Sources checked 2026-10-09. Illustrations · Luminary Oddities.
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