Cryptic Wood White - Favourite Photo of 2024

[Wurzel]

Cryptic Wood White - Favourite Photo of 2024

Week 4

What with Halloween gone and Bonfire Night imminent the shops will soon start playing their Xmas songs! So while you grind your teeth in exasperation consolation comes in the form of this weeks’ Favourites. This is a bit of a 'Brucie Bonus' so hopefully it can get a few posts from our Northern Irish contingent

Please could I ask that everyone waits until a topic has been opened by me for a particular species before posting photos as then it will be easier to keep track of things? Of course our overseas members are very welcome to fill in the obvious gaps relating to rare UK migrants. As in previous years details of locations, dates, times and circumstances would be welcome as would any accompanying stories and anecdotes or other observations of behaviour and interesting other points.
Here we got then!

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Padfield]

It's not easy to be sure of juvernica in Switzerland. According to the stats, one in four wood whites is cryptic, but diagnostic criteria, if you don't resort to violence, are a little woolly. The best guide seems to be that in juvernica, the dark line on the hindwing is parallel to the outer margin, while in sinapis it is straighter and nears the margin as it goes north.

I believe this is juvernica:



I saw hundreds if not thousands of wood whites all over Switzerland this year, so I definitely saw the species, but it is - as the name suggests - a rather cryptic little critter !

For comparison, I think this one is sinapis :



Guy