Cabbage is a widely grown vegetable crop that attracts a diverse group of consumers in the natural world. Its appeal stems from high water content, readily accessible leaves, and a dense nutritional profile rich in protein and vitamins. This combination makes it a highly desirable food source for animals seeking quick hydration and energy. Identifying the specific animal responsible for eating a cabbage plant often relies on recognizing the distinct pattern of damage each animal leaves behind.
Large Mammalian Eaters
The most destructive feeders are larger mammals whose consumption can result in the complete removal of young plants or significant portions of mature heads. Rabbits, deer, and groundhogs are among the most common vertebrates that consume cabbage. These animals typically feed under the cover of dusk, overnight, or early morning, making direct observation infrequent for most growers.
Rabbits and groundhogs inflict damage close to the ground, often consuming entire seedlings or leaving behind a clean, angled cut on the plant’s stem or leaves. This precise cut is a distinguishing sign of rodents and lagomorphs, resulting from their sharp incisor teeth. They can cause substantial damage by gnawing down multiple mature cabbage plants in a single feeding session.
Deer browsing is identifiable by its ragged or torn appearance on the foliage or stems, a result of their lack of upper incisor teeth. Deer pull and rip the leaves rather than cutting them cleanly. This damage can occur at a higher level, often up to six feet from the ground. The presence of large hoof prints and substantial droppings further confirms a deer as the feeder.
Primary Insect and Larval Pests
Insects and their larvae are the most persistent and numerous consumers of cabbage. The larvae of the Cabbage White Butterfly, commonly called imported cabbageworms, are a primary concern. These velvety, green caterpillars create large, irregular holes in the leaves and often bore down into the developing head of the cabbage. A clear indicator of their presence is the considerable amount of dark green, pellet-like excrement, or frass, left scattered on the leaves.
Cabbage Loopers, the larvae of a grey-brown moth, are also voracious eaters that create holes in leaves, frequently feeding between the veins. These caterpillars are distinguished by their “looping” movement, an arching of the body as they move. This movement is due to a lack of legs in the middle section.
Aphids, such as the cabbage aphid, are piercing/sucking insects that suck the sap from the plant instead of chewing holes. Heavy infestations lead to yellowing, stunted growth, and curled leaves, often accompanied by a sticky residue called “honeydew.” Slugs and snails also feed on cabbage, leaving behind large, ragged holes in the leaves and a characteristic silvery, dried slime trail as they move across the plant surface.
Avian and Less Common Feeders
Birds represent a less frequent, but notable, group of cabbage consumers, with species like pigeons and crows sometimes pecking at the plants. Their feeding is less destructive than that of mammals or insects, resulting in small, localized tears or punctures on the outer leaves. Birds are also observed in the cabbage patch while feeding on the insect pests themselves, such as various caterpillars, rather than the foliage.
Smaller rodents, like voles and mice, may occasionally feed on cabbage, but their primary focus is usually on the root system or stems near the ground line. Voles are known to chew on plant roots or girdle stems just below the soil surface. This damage can cause the plant to appear wilted or suddenly collapse.