Our garden is
experiencing a sudden surge of Painted Ladies—seemingly out of
nowhere. Along with most of our usual
butterflies, they have been absent all summer.
(Only the giant swallowtails, attracted by our orange trees and rue,
have been abundant this year.) The Painted Ladies are like clouds over the blossoming bushes, as they
energetically flit from flower to flower.
They are quick and wary, and very easily disturbed, flying away for a
moment when anyone approaches them. But
they quickly return. Did they all emerge
from their chrysalises as adults at the same time, or did they migrate here
from somewhere else? The world's most
common butterflies, Painted Ladies are among the most interesting migratory creatures of the animal kingdom and travel long distances across generations like the
better-known monarch does. It's said
that they can reach speeds of thirty miles an hour while migrating, and
sometimes travel almost a hundred miles a day.
Like all butterflies, they love hot weather. With plenty of nectar plants, as well as
sunflowers and mallows for their larvae, the garden filled with sunshine is a
paradise to them.
***
On the evening of their arrival, however, one butterfly was caught by a well-camouflaged praying mantis (the color of a mature lantana stem), who then enjoyed a hearty meal—his own little paradise.
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