Common butterfly

The Common Butterfly is a white butterfly that is similar to the Yellow Butterfly in all but color. They sell for 80 or 90 bells depending on the game version. They fly slowly in circles, generally around flowers, but can also be found flying freely. The Common Butterfly is the first insect according to number order of the bug chart in all games. It, along with the Yellow Butterfly, are some of the first insects to be in Animal Crossing: New Leaf.

So far it has been the first insect (in the insect list) in every Animal Crossing game.

Donating to the Museum
As with all bugs and fish in, 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
Blathers response upon accepting butterflies for the museum in Animal Crossing is the same for all species:

"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
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 is 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
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
After donating a common butterfly, the museum sign reads:

"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."

Bug Encylopedia Information
In Wild World and City Folk Players can access information about fish and insects in the menu. Regarding the Common Butterfly-

Animal Crossing Movie
In the movie a Common Butterfly makes an appearance in the blue rose garden when Ai tries to find Apollo.

Further Information
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 slightly 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 2 black spots on their wings.

A similar species, Pieris brassicae also known as the Large White shares the name of Cabbage White, but is much larger and differs greatly in markings. Despite a similar taste for cabbage family plants, it has not been introduced into other countries and is only found in Europe, unlike the Small White which has become almost worldwide. The saying in mentions how "a lot have been around recently" is likely a reference to how the butterfly has been introduced to Japan and spread very rapidly over a short period of time.

The scientific name is derived as follows:

Rapae - Greek word rapavi ("rapavi" in modern day) meaning radish, which refers to the food plant of this species.