Common butterfly

From Nookipedia, the Animal Crossing wiki

Artwork of common butterfly
Real-world info
Name: Pieris rapae
Family: Pieridae (Yellow-white butterflies)
Main appearances

Other appearances
Names in other languages
 モンシロチョウ
 白粉蝶
 Piéride de la rave
 Mariposa común
 Farfalla comune
 Белянка
 배추흰나비
 白粉蝶
 Piéride de la rave
 Mariposa común
 Kohlweißling
 Koolwitje

The common butterfly is a bug in the Animal Crossing series that appears in all games to date. It can be found flying around the town or island at varying times of day and year between games. In Animal Crossing: Wild World, Animal Crossing: City Folk, and Animal Crossing: New Leaf, it can only spawn near flowers.

Aside from its color, the common butterfly is identical in appearance to the yellow butterfly. In Animal Crossing: New Horizons, it can be caught throughout the year outside of mid to late summer.

Catch details[edit]

In Animal Crossing[edit]

#1
Common butterfly
"I caught a common butterfly! I've seen a lot of these around lately!"

Time of year[nb 1] Mar – Oct
Time of day Mar, Sep – Oct:
8 AM – 4 PM
Apr – Aug:
8 AM – 5 PM
Location Flying
Weather Any except rain
Selling price  80 Bells
Furniture size 1.0 x 1.0


In Wild World[edit]

#1

Common butterfly
"I caught a common butterfly! It's so white and pure!"

Description They are white, but the male's eyes are yellow, and the female's, white.
Time of year Mar – Sep
Time of day 4 AM – 7 PM
Peak times Jul – Aug
Location Flying near flowers
Bug size 50 mm
Rarity Common
Selling price  90 Bells
Furniture size 1.0 x 1.0


In City Folk[edit]

#1

Common butterfly
"I caught a common butterfly! So white and charming!"

Description Though all look white to the naked eye, males and females are different colors.
Time of year Mar – Jun; Sep
Time of day Mar – Jun:
8 AM – 4 PM
Sep:
8 AM – 4 PM
Peak times Mar – Jun:
8 AM – 5 PM
Location Flying near flowers
Bug size 50 mm
Rarity Common
Selling price  90 Bells
Furniture size 1.0 x 1.0


In New Leaf[edit]

#1

Common butterfly
"I caught a common butterfly! How could I resist?"

Time of year Mar – Jun; Sep
Time of day Mar – Jun:
4 AM – 7 PM
Sep:
8 AM – 4 PM
Peak times Mar – Jun:
8 AM – 5 PM
Location Flying near flowers
Size 54 mm
Rarity Very common
Selling price  90 Bells
Furniture size 1.0 x 1.0


In Pocket Camp[edit]

#16

Common butterfly

Availability Currently available (since March 26, 2024)
  • 2019-04-09 – 2019-04-12 (Spring Butterfly Goals)
  • 2019-08-20 – 2019-12-27
  • 2020-02-18 – 2020-02-21 (All Aflutter Butterfly Goals)
  • 2020-03-27 – 2020-06-29
  • 2021-03-26 – 2021-06-29
  • 2022-03-11 – 2022-03-14 (Spring Butterfly Goals)
  • 2022-03-24 – 2022-06-23
  • 2023-03-11 – 2023-03-14 (All Aflutter Butterfly Goals)
  • 2023-03-23 – 2023-06-28
Location Sunburst Island PC Map Icon.png Sunburst Island
Size 21.0 mm – 87.0 mm
Rarity
Selling price  10 Bells
Version added 2.3.0
Villager gift data Tier: 1 (Common)

Rewards:

  •  100 Bells
  • +2 Heart PC Icon.png Friendship points


In New Horizons[edit]

#1

Common butterfly
"I caught a common butterfly! They often flutter by!"

Time of year North: Sep – Jun
South: Mar – Dec
Time of day 4 AM – 7 PM
Location Flying
Weather Any except rain
Spawn requirement Appears from the start of the game
Selling prices  Nook's Cranny 160 Bells
 Flick 240 Bells
Furniture size 1.0 x 1.0


Donating to the museum[edit]

As with all bugs and fish in the Animal Crossing series, the common butterfly can be donated to the museum by talking to Blathers. Below is what he has to say upon donation;

In Animal Crossing[edit]

When the player is donating it to the museum in Animal Crossing, Blathers will say the following:

"There's an old saying among some of my contemporaries: "Butterflies are beautiful, yet moths are monstrous." Well, if you were to ask me, I'd say they were all the same! By which I mean disgusting! Truly hoo-rrific, wot wot!"

The common butterfly can be found fluttering around the flowers in the central display in the insect room after donation.

In Wild World[edit]

When donated to the museum in Wild World, Blathers the curator will speak about the common butterfly;

"The common butterfly looks quite innocent, eh wot? Far from it! It's a pest! It is a worldwide cabbage-field ravisher, hoo! I suppose that's rather beside the point, but still, innocent my foot!"

The common butterfly appears in the first room of the insect exhibit, fluttering above the flowers on the right hand side of the room.

In City Folk[edit]

As with previous games, Blathers treats the common butterfly with general disgust:

"If one were to look closely at a common butterfly, one might notice that it's covered in fine hairs... But WHY would one look closely?! Blecccch! Creepiness aside, one also gets icky powder on one's hands by touching them... Not for me, eh wot?"

After donation, the common butterfly flies around the flower beds in the lower terrace of the insect room.

In New Leaf[edit]

Upon being donated, the butterfly can be found in the first room of the bug exhibit resting on flowers with the other butterflies. The exhibit has this to say about the Common Butterfly:

"Seen flapping in the sun, common butterflies can be identified by black spots on their white wings. To the human eye, both males and females look white, but there are actually subtle differences. On closer inspection, the males' wings look black while the females' wings look white. The caterpillars have been known to cause damage to farmers' crops."

In New Horizons[edit]

When asked about the bug, Blathers will say the following:

"The common butterfly would have you believe it is but a beautiful friend flitting prettily about the flowers. Bah, I say! They may seem innocent things with their pretty white wings, but they hide a dark side! The common butterfly caterpillar is called a cabbage worm, you see, and it's a most voracious pest. The ravenous beasts chew through cabbage, broccoli, kale and the like with a devastating gusto. And my feathers! Their green coloring is truly GROSS! A hoo-rrific hue, I say."

The common butterfly can be found in the butterfly room in the museum.

Gallery[edit]

Real-world information[edit]

A cabbage white butterfly

The small cabbage white, Pieris rapae, also known as the cabbage white, is a common species of butterfly that can be found throughout Europe, Northern Africa and Asia. They are a creamy white and feature two black spots on each wing which darken during the summer months. The caterpillars of the cabbage white, as the name suggests, like to eat cabbages and brussel sprouts, and so therefore are considered a pest by gardeners. The butterflies found in game are all female- only female cabbage whites have two black spots on their wings.

Etymology[edit]

Pieries is Latin for 'muse'. The muses were Greek goddesses that inspired the arts. The word rapae is derived from the Latin word for 'turnip', rapa.

More information on this topic is available at Wikipedia.

Trivia[edit]

Names in other languages[edit]

Japanese モンシロチョウ
monshirochou
Cabbage white butterfly (lit. "patterned pierid")

Korean 배추흰나비
baechuhuinnabi
Cabbage white butterfly (lit. "cabbage pierid")

Simplified Chinese 白粉蝶
báifěndié
Cabbage white butterfly (lit. "white pierid")

Russian Белянка
Belyanka
Pierid

Dutch Koolwitje Cabbage white

German Kohlweißling Cabbage white

European Spanish Mariposa común Common butterfly

European French Piéride de la rave Cabbage white butterfly (lit. "cabbage pierid")

Italian Farfalla comune Common butterfly

Notes[edit]

  1. All bugs and fish in the first-generation games can appear at a lower spawn rate up to five days before the start of their first month of availability.