# Pepe ma (*Pieris rapae*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/pepe-ma  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

Pepe ma (Pieris rapae) is an insect in the butterflies and moths subgroup, placed in the family Pieridae of the order Lepidoptera. It is also known by the English names Small white, Cabbage white, White butterfly, Cabbage butterfly and Small cabbage white. The species was named (Linnaeus, 1758) and belongs to the genus Pieris, superfamily Papilionoidea, class Insecta and phylum Arthropoda. The Catalogue of Life lists Pepe ma as a living species, not extinct.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | Not recorded |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Wingspan | 3.9 cm – 5.03 cm |
| Lifespan | Not recorded |
| Diet | Nectarivore |
| Main food | flowers |
| Habitat | grassland, human_modified, rocky, shrubland |
| Young per litter or clutch | Not recorded |
| Active | By day (diurnal) |
| On the wing | All year |
| Generations a year | Several |
| Larval food plants | Brassicaceae family |
| Conservation status | Not recorded |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Arthropoda
- class: Insecta
- order: Lepidoptera
- family: Pieridae
- genus: Pieris
- species: *Pieris rapae* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Artogeia rapae*, *Artogeia rapae orientalis*, *Papilio rapae*, *Pieris brassciae var. crucivora*, *Pieris brassicae var. crucivora*, *Pieris mandschurica*, *Pieris metra*, *Pieris napaeae*, *Pieris napeae*, *Pieris rafae*, *Pieris rapae accrescens*, *Pieris rapae crucivora*, *Pieris rapae debilis*, *Pieris rapae eumorpha*, *Pieris rapae flavescens*, *Pieris rapae orientalis*, *Pieris rapae pulverea*, *Pieris rapae var. mandschurica*, *Pieris rapae var. orientalis*, *Pieris rapae yokohamae*, *Pieris rapae yunnana*, *Pieris wladiwostokensis*, *Pontia metra*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is Pepe ma?

Pepe ma is an insect in the butterflies and moths subgroup, in the order Lepidoptera and family Pieridae.

### What is the scientific name of Pepe ma?

Its scientific name is Pieris rapae, in the genus Pieris.

### What other names does Pepe ma have?

It is also called Small white, Cabbage white, White butterfly, Cabbage butterfly and Small cabbage white.

### Who named Pieris rapae and when?

Pieris rapae was named by Linnaeus in 1758, written as (Linnaeus, 1758).

### Is Pepe ma extinct?

No. The Catalogue of Life lists it as living, not extinct.

### What family does Pepe ma belong to?

It belongs to the family Pieridae, within the superfamily Papilionoidea.

## Sources

- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [LepTraits 1.0: a globally comprehensive dataset of butterfly traits](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.19874602.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Shirey, V., Larsen, E., Doherty, A. et al. (2022) LepTraits 1.0: a globally comprehensive dataset of butterfly traits. Scientific Data 9: 382. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-022-01473-5. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.19874602.v1
- [TraitCH: a multi-taxa functional trait dataset for Switzerland and Europe](https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15063844), CC BY 4.0, 2.0. Chauvier, Y., Adde, A., Bergamini, A. et al. (2025) TraitCH: a multi-taxa functional trait dataset for Switzerland and Europe. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15063844
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Pepe ma (Pieris rapae). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/pepe-ma