Butterflies and moths by Siwa

Cabbage butterfly (Pieris rapae) on a tomato leaf. As a caterpillar, this butterfly feeds on vegetables like lettuce, kale, collard greens, cabbage, etc. Its caterpillar grows to about an inch in length and is light green and fuzzy.

A male Fiery Skipper (Hylephila phyleus) in my garden on a squash leaf. A female resembles the male in size but is all brown except for a line of orange spots on the wings.These are very small and super  fast. My dad says they look like jet fighters. They feed on various species of grass as caterpillars.

A Peablue butterfly (Lampides boeticus) also known as a Long Tailed Blue because of the little tails on its hind wings. Butterflies in this family are called Blues because the inside part of their wings is a light lavender-blue color. When they fly they beat their wings so fast that they look like a small bluish blur.

A Coconut leafroller (Omiodes blackburni) moth on Naupaka leaves. This moth feeds primarily on coconut leaves as a caterpillar but can also be found on other palm trees or even banana leafs. It is endemic to Hawaii.

Koa Haole Moth (Macaria abydata) also known as the Dot Line Angle Moth. It feeds on a wide range of plants belonging to the Fabaceae family or Pea family. I can usually find one or two of these moths resting on the side of my house under the outside lights at night.

An Asian Swallowtail (Papilio xuthus), the only swallowtail butterfly in Hawaii. To protect itself from predators this butterfly's caterpillar resembles bird droppings until about halfway through its life as a caterpillar when it turns a bright lime green. The caterpillar feeds on citrus leaves.

A Gulf Fritillary butterfly (Agraulis vanillae) on a basil plant. The caterpillar is striped black and orange with black spines down its back to warn predators that it is toxic; it feeds on members of the Passiflora family, or Passion fruit family.