Cryptic Wood White
CRCritically Endangered

Cryptic Wood White

Leptidea juvernica

Leptidea juvernica, the Cryptic wood white, is a butterfly in the family Pieridae.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons (CC) via https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leptidea_juvernica

01Classification

Taxonomy & Classification

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Lepidoptera

Family

Pieridae

Genus

Leptidea

Cryptic Wood White belongs to the family Pieridae, order Lepidoptera, within the Insecta class.

02Description

Species Profile

Leptidea juvernica, the Cryptic wood white, is a butterfly in the family Pieridae.

The Cryptic Wood White is critically endangered primarily due to habitat loss and fragmentation of its specialized woodland and grassland habitats. Agricultural intensification, urbanization, and changes in land management practices have severely reduced the availability of suitable breeding sites and host plants. Climate change may also be affecting the species' distribution and the phenology of its host plants.

Key Facts

IUCN StatusCritically Endangered (CR)
GroupInsects
03Habitat

Habitat & Distribution

L. juvernica ranges from Ireland and France in the west to Kazakhstan in the east. The population in Ireland was formerly thought to be Leptidea reali, but is now known to be L. juvernica.

04Threats

Threats

!

IUCN Red List: Critically Endangered

The Cryptic Wood White is critically endangered primarily due to habitat loss and fragmentation of its specialized woodland and grassland habitats. Agricultural intensification, urbanization, and changes in land management practices have severely reduced the availability of suitable breeding sites and host plants. Climate change may also be affecting the species' distribution and the phenology of its host plants.

Agricultural intensification

HighOngoing

Habitat loss and fragmentation

HighOngoing

Urbanization and development

HighOngoing

Changes in woodland management

MediumOngoing

Climate change impacts

MediumOngoing
Community

Community Sightings

Report a sighting

No community sightings yet. Be the first to report!

07Sources

Sources & Attribution

How to Cite

IUCN: IUCN (2025). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2025-1. Available at: https://www.iucnredlist.org. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2025-1.RLTS

GBIF: GBIF.org (2025). GBIF Home Page. Available at: https://www.gbif.org

This page: SpeciesRadar (2025). Cryptic Wood White (Leptidea juvernica). SpeciesRadar: Intelligence for Earth's Biodiversity. Available at: https://speciesradar.org/species/cryptic-wood-white

Full citation guide & data usage terms