Painted Lady
Vanessa cardui (Linnaeus, 1758)
Family: Nymphalidae
Subfamily: Nymphalinae
Identification: Upperside is orange-brown with darker wing bases; forewing with black apex patch and white bar on leading edge; hindwing submarginal row of 5 small black spots sometimes has blue scales. Underside has a black, brown, and gray pattern with 4 small submarginal eyespots.
Wing Span: 2 - 2 7/8 inches (5.1 - 7.3 cm).
Life History: Males perch and patrol during the afternoon for receptive females. In the West males usually perch on shrubs on hilltops, while in the East males perch on bare ground in open areas. Females lay eggs singly on the tops of host plant leaves. Caterpillars live in silk nests and eat leaves. Adults hibernate only in the South and in mild winters.
Flight: One to three flights in the East from May-October, three to four flights in South Texas from October-April.
Caterpillar Hosts: More than 100 host plants have been noted; favorites include thistles (Asteraceae), hollyhock and mallow (Malvaceae), and various legumes (Fabaceae).
Adult Food: The Painted Lady prefers nectar from composites 3-6 feet high, especially thistles; also aster, cosmos, blazing star, ironweed, and joe-pye weed. Flowers from other families that are visited include red clover, buttonbush, privet, and milkweeds.
Habitat: Almost everywhere, especially in open or disturbed areas including gardens, old fields, dunes.
Range: On all continents except Australia and Antarctica. From the deserts of northern Mexico, the Painted Lady migrates and temporarily colonizes the United States and Canada south of the Arctic. Occasionally, population explosions in Mexico will cause massive northward migrations. Comments: The Painted Lady is also known as the Thistle Butterfly because of the caterpillars' food preference and also as the Cosmopolitan because it is the most widely distributed butterfly in the world.
Conservation: Not required.
NCGR: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs: None reported.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 1 - 24 of 6906 verified sightings
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Observation date: Aug 13, 2024
Submitted by: regina rochefort
Region: Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Aug 13, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/painted_lady_98.jpg?itok=4IfyQNxc)
Observation date: Jul 21, 2024
Submitted by: canocker
Region: New Brunswick, Canada
Verified by: jmgesell
Verified date: Aug 13, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/dscn1698.jpeg?itok=7RwV1WdJ)
Observation date: Aug 12, 2024
Submitted by: pgericks
Region: Snohomish County, Washington, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: Aug 12, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/dsc_9186-standard.jpg?itok=0WQJEgA3)
Observation date: Apr 18, 2024
Submitted by: dvollmar
Region: San Bernardino County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Aug 09, 2024
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Observation date: Jun 30, 2024
Submitted by: houdini73
Region: Brown County, Texas, United States
Verified by: jwileyrains
Verified date: Aug 05, 2024
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Observation date: Aug 02, 2024
Submitted by: Dennis Forsythe
Region: Charleston County, South Carolina, United States
Verified by: Dennis Forsythe
Verified date: Aug 02, 2024
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Observation date: Jul 02, 2024
Submitted by: sisibop
Region: Ada County, Idaho, United States
Verified by: stevekohler
Verified date: Jul 31, 2024
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Observation date: Jul 26, 2024
Submitted by: Critical Rick
Region: Waldo County, Maine, United States
Verified by: John Calhoun
Verified date: Jul 29, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/dsc_3802-2.jpg?itok=5M5OshQ_)
Observation date: Jul 03, 2024
Submitted by: Cascade Colors
Region: Grand County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Jul 25, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/paintedlady_8_0.jpg?itok=y8fq9hM9)
Observation date: Jul 23, 2024
Submitted by: asombro_institute
Region: Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 24, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/paintedlady_9_0.jpg?itok=sy1Zw2S7)
Observation date: Jul 23, 2024
Submitted by: asombro_institute
Region: Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 24, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/p7238078.jpg?itok=sdsmmiVT)
Observation date: Jul 23, 2024
Submitted by: weflybye
Region: Mason County, Washington, United States
Verified by: davidwdroppers
Verified date: Jul 23, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/2024-7-14_4_painted_lady_butterfly_along_nm_244.jpg?itok=dC-PMM2u)
Observation date: Jul 14, 2024
Submitted by: JudyLY
Region: Otero County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 23, 2024
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Observation date: Jul 13, 2024
Submitted by: Cactuswren1976
Region: Taos County, New Mexico, United States
Verified by: stevecary
Verified date: Jul 16, 2024
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Observation date: Jul 12, 2024
Submitted by: Lydiaak
Region: Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jul 13, 2024
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Observation date: Apr 29, 2024
Submitted by: pjrosa
Region: Solano County, California, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jul 06, 2024
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Observation date: Jul 02, 2024
Submitted by: Benjamin Miller
Region: Knox County, Ohio, United States
Verified by: rogerdowner
Verified date: Jul 05, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/dsc_0293-2.jpg?itok=cbRywl6C)
Observation date: Jun 01, 2024
Submitted by: Cascade Colors
Region: Grand County, Colorado, United States
Verified by: mikefisher
Verified date: Jul 01, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/painted_lady_k.falls_25_june_2024_dorsal.jpg?itok=1vRNoHst)
Observation date: Jun 25, 2024
Submitted by: Luna-Linuche.76
Region: Klamath County, Oregon, United States
Verified by: Ken Davenport
Verified date: Jun 28, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/20240615_-_painted_lady.jpg?itok=RTBl7sUO)
Observation date: Jun 15, 2024
Submitted by: rtsmith
Region: Centre County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jun 24, 2024
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Observation date: Oct 01, 2023
Submitted by: Ozark_Bill
Region: St. Charles County, Missouri, United States
Verified by: CA Ivy
Verified date: Jun 24, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/img_1444lb_painted_lady_dorsal_1444_.jpg?itok=Im_9Oxez)
Observation date: Sep 03, 2017
Submitted by: Puccini
Region: Roberts County, South Dakota, United States
Verified by: J_Martineau
Verified date: Jun 24, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/dsc_9142.jpg?itok=2H-tFUpZ)
Observation date: Jun 15, 2024
Submitted by: hockeybruce7
Region: Monroe County, Pennsylvania, United States
Verified by: davidwright
Verified date: Jun 16, 2024
![](https://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/sites/default/files/styles/bamona_scale_and_crop_640px_by_640px/public/bamona_images/img_2158_painted_lady_vanessa_cardui_at_falls_on_lake_creek_wy.jpg?itok=iBCZ2N0V)
Observation date: Jun 08, 2024
Submitted by: NikkiM
Region: Park County, Wyoming, United States
Verified by: J_Martineau
Verified date: Jun 14, 2024
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