Painted jezebel
This butterfly's caterpillars can strip a mistletoe plant bare, and researchers have found the plant sometimes withers entirely once its resident caterpillars finish feeding.
| Where | Forests, parks and garden treetops |
|---|---|
| Size | 60 to 80 mm wingspan |
| When | January to December |
The Painted Jezebel is a white butterfly with veins dusted black, more heavily so toward the wing margins and in females. The hindwing underside carries a bright yellow base and a red marginal border that together warn predators the butterfly is distasteful.
Caterpillars feed gregariously on mistletoe growing on tree branches, storing toxins from the plant that carry through to the adult, and adults flutter at treetop height, descending to flowers or shaded resting spots in gardens and forest.
Traits
Habitat
Garden
Colour
White, Yellow, Red
Active
Day
To people
Mild
Safe to handle; distasteful to predators if eaten, from toxins stored since the caterpillar stage.
Activity through the year
Often confused with
Black margins along the wing veins are sharper and more clearly defined, with a paler lemon yellow underside lacking the deep chrome yellow tone of the Painted Jezebel.
Questions
Is the Painted jezebel dangerous to people?
Mild. Safe to handle; distasteful to predators if eaten, from toxins stored since the caterpillar stage.
When can you see the Painted jezebel?
The Painted jezebel can be seen from January to December, by day.
Plate retouched from a museum specimen photo by Swiss Natural History Collections - SwissNatColl, CC BY 4.0, GBIF Licence
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Butterflies and moths›Whites and yellows›Delias
Last updated 2026-09-27. Every entry is checked against published sources.