cabbage worm

• cabbageworm, cabbage-worm

cabbage worm (plural cabbage worms)

1. Any of various lepidopterans whose larvae feed on cabbages and other cole crops.
   1. Any of several species of Pieris (family Pieridae) butterflies:
      1. A small white (Pieris rapae), found in most temperate regions.
      2. A large white (Pieris brassicae), of Eurasia and north Africa.
      3. A southern cabbage butterfly (Pieris protodice), of North America.
      4. A green-veined white (Pieris napi) of Europe and North America.
   2. A cabbage looper (Trichoplusia ni, family Noctuidae), of much of the northern hemisphere.
   3. A cabbage webworm (Hellula undalis, family Crambidae) native to southern Europe or Asia that also injures cabbages and other vegetables in the Gulf states of the United States.
   4. A diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella, syn. Plutella maculipennis, family Plutellidae).