Knowledgebase
Insect ID #806133
Asked August 13, 2022, 10:28 PM EDT
I've identified the Cabbage White Butterfly-Pieris rapae on the left. I hope that is accurate.
But I have no idea what the colony of extremely small moths is on the right. ARE they moths?
Jackson County Oregon
Expert Response
The small “moths” are whiteflies. Whiteflies are soft-bodied, winged insects closely related to aphids and mealybugs. Despite their name, whiteflies are not a type of fly, though they do have wings and are capable of flying.
Whiteflies can be as small as 1/12 of an inch, are somewhat triangular in shape, and are often found in clusters on the undersides of leaves. They are active during the day and will scatter when disturbed, so they can be easier to spot than some nocturnal insect pests.
There are hundreds of species of whiteflies, but most affect only a small number of host plants. However, there are a few whitefly species that affect a wider range of plants, which make them the most problematic in horticulture. These whitefly species include the greenhouse whitefly, bandedwinged whitefly, giant whitefly, and silverleaf whitefly, among others.