Elodina angulipennis (Southern Pearl-white)

Other Common Names

Common Pearl-white, Pearly White

Notes

After any number of attempts, I finally found this butterfly. I’d read that there was a colony in the Royal Botanical Gardens in Sydney, living on two Capparis trees. There is even a sign underneath
the larger tree claiming it is the only colony in the Sydney area. I looked for them there every time I went to the Gardens, which is a lot of times, without seeing hide nor hair of them. At times there were loads of Caper Whites, but no Elodina.
But whilst showing relatives around, I checked the trees again and there were the Pearl Whites, maybe a couple of dozen in total. They weren’t easy to photograph – like most whites they do tend to flutter around a lot. It was a partly cloudy day, and when the sun went in they always landed, but generally too high up for me to get shots.
They’re very pretty little things – I love the way they shimmer when they’re flying around.

Since I first found this species, it has been flying at the Royal Botanic Gardens every time I’ve been there, regardless of the time of year. I once saw one at Chapel Hill in Brisbane, and in 2021 I found that a colony had established itself at Mount Annan Botanic Garden in Sydney’s south-west.

I’ve also written a blog post about the Pearl Whites in the Royal Botanic Gardens

Sightings

Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney – Loads of times, throughout the year
Chapel Hill, Brisbane – November 2008
Mount Annan Botanic Garden – April 2021

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