The painted lady butterfly phenomenon
Post categories: In depth
| 17:57 UK time, Wednesday, 3 June 2009
If you've been keeping a finger on the Springwatch pulse, we hope that you've been lucky enough to have experienced a glimpse of the beautiful phenomenon that's literally sweeping the nation.
The painted lady is one of the most widespread migrant butterflies found worldwide except in South America. It has a wide range of habitats and food sources including thistles and nettles.
Every year, this species takes on a mammoth migration north, up from the desert fringes of North Africa, the Middle East, and central Asia, to mainland Europe and on to Britain and Ireland.
This year we've been experiencing spectacular arrivals of painted ladies in the UK in huge numbers and Butterfly Conservation think they know why...
In January this year heavy winter rains left the Atlas mountains of Morocco covered with lush green caterpillar food, resulting in a huge hatch and hundreds upon thousands of these gorgeous orange-brown butterflies joining the migration out of Africa.
Around March and April these flocks alighted in the Mediterranean and started breeding. With another generation of caterpillars happily fattening on the foliage in France, Spain and Portugal, only a few of the first generation overshot to arrive here in the UK in April.
The second generation hatched out and headed north and our lucky southerners first experienced them pouring in tens of thousands - and these guys aren't just here for or summer weather, they're breeding again!
The painted lady has a one month metamorphosis period, that's from being an egg to a caterpillar to a butterfly. So in a month's time we could be expecting unbelievable figures across Britain! You literally ain't seen nothing yet!
There's been all kinds of figures reported in the news with 3,000 painted ladies seen in 45min and 18,000 spotted off the Norfolk coast. These extraordinary numbers are the result of exceptional weather conditions in Africa and a migration of this magnitude hasn't been seen since the 1960s.
But that's not the last of it...What's next?
Their closest cousin, the red admiral butterfly, migrates south after its initial northward travels but there has been no record of painted ladies doing the same. Usually they wouldn't survive a British winter (although climate change may affect this in the future) so will they head south for another mass migration? We don't know yet but round about the time of Autumnwatch we could be in for an absolute treat!
© MMIX~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~24~RS~)
Comments
Sign in or register to comment.
I recently spotted large numbers of these beautiful butterflies in the New Forest. I stopped at a lay-by a few miles from Ringwood and sadly there were a lot of these dead on the ground. I watched for a while and I saw a lot of them attempting to cross the very busy main road and being caught up in the traffic slip-stream. I have never seen so many butterflies of any kind at one time, it was so sad to see them all succumbing to the traffic, if only they had flown a bit higher up they would have been alright.
Complain about this comment
i've just cume back from Jersy and there the iland is cuvered with them.
Complain about this comment
Hello, i would just like to say that i saw one in my garden yesterday. I live at the top of the shetland islands on Unst..i will be looking out for more of them
Complain about this comment
Just joined here today. I work off-shore on oil rigs and just got home last night 2/6/09 during my 9 day trip the last 5 of those i saw at least five of these butterflies everyday when i was on the rig that is about 100 miles from the coast of aberdeen. Why were they so far from land?
Complain about this comment
You say that Painted Ladies have never been seen actually returning to Africa. Has anybody thought about spraying them with Smart Water? (used for crime detection. They must at some point in their life get rain on them without suffering harm. So if it were possible to get Smart Water on some of them, these butterflies reaching Africa could be traced back to where they came from.
Complain about this comment
This is not just a 'Painted Lady' phenomenom - in the sixties I believe there was a similar influx of Clouded Yellow butterflies - which hasn't happened since to any great degree.
Complain about this comment
on friday 29th may i was on the beach at borth in wales and saw a constant stream of painted ladies all day,this was only interupted by a red kite over the sea.
Complain about this comment
It is not true to say that seeing so many Painted Lady butterflies is a "once in a lifetime experience" as stated on tonight's programme. These mass migrations northwards happen roughly every six to eight years, the last ones occurring in 2003 and in 1995 before that.
Last week driving around in Kent I saw many many hundreds of them, all flying in the same direction, roughly east to west, heading inland.
Complain about this comment
With reference to one of the comments above regarding Clouded Yellow butterflies, the last big year for mass migration of that species was in 1996 when I saw several thousands of them on a field of lucerne near where I live.
Complain about this comment
A week ago I came back from the Valencia region of Spain where there were thousands of Painted Ladies. We particularly noticed the great variation in size. Some were quite small and others very much larger. Perhaps these are the ones which will make their way back to Africa? I also wonder why there is any need to continue migration, when the vegetation in Spain at present is very lush, with hundreds of species of flowers in bloom, with many different types of thistle among them. Not at all dried up by 'scorchio' weather as suggested in the programme.
Complain about this comment
i have seen many painted lady butterflies along the kennet and avon canal near hungerford west berks,got pics to prove it
Complain about this comment
Iam absolutely panic striken over this ive been on the message board to no avail, I have a very bad Butterfly phobia, and need help, iam 51 years old and was kidnapped by older kids when i was three, they locked me in a barn , and it took hours for me to be found, inside were fluttering moths, i had a nervous breakdown when i was three and then wet the bed till i was ten. it has made me feel idiotic and ashamed of myself as iam a quivering wreck if one flys near me, i hang onto my hubby and end up on the floor, people think iam having a fit, iam so embarrased about this, i cannot even look at a picture of one and have to turn away from the TV, if one is shown , and i had to scroll down this page pretty sharp too. please can anyone help ??
Complain about this comment
It's not "the" Painted Lady phenomenom nor is it a once in a lifetime chance. The last time we saw this was during from late-Spring right up until Autumn, in 1996.
And not only Painted Lady butterflies! That year (1996) there were many sightings of Clouded Yellow and even Camberwell Beauty, not to mention the huge numbers of Silver Y moths in August!
Complain about this comment
We have seen quite a number of Painted Ladies in the Isle of Lewis, in the Outer Hebrides. Very impressive sight.
Complain about this comment
We were having our Fish and Chip supper on Granny's bay, Lytham, and were astounded at the number of Painted Ladies that were coming in off the sea.
Complain about this comment
As a Dutch Springwatchfan I would like to add that also in the Netherlands we see an extraordinarily amount of Painted Ladies or Distelvlinder as we call them (translate as thistle butterfly) at least, is the Painted Lady a.k.a. Vanessa Cardui?
Wishing you best of luck with the best programme on European television (UK citizens you should be so proud!)!
Complain about this comment
saw at least 20 to 30 painted ladies coming through my garden in about an hour on a quite strong SE wind, this was on friday 29th may near merthyr tydfil. after this initial invasion a few have stuck around which is great!
Complain about this comment
I found a painted lady in my porch this morning. I'm in Bournemouth and it was the first one I've seen. I was v excited about it though!
Complain about this comment
Was interested in the painted lady feature thought Chris might like my poem which I wrote recently.Lepidopterist
I watch for the painted lady
Under the brimstone arch
Of the gatekeepers lodge,
My Camberwell beauty
With the purple hairstreak.
We walked together in the speckled wood
Under the clouded yellow sky,
Flitting in the sunlight
Chasing speckles, zig-
Zagging through yellow light.
She, a silver-wash fritillary, me a strutting peacock,
Until the light fades
And she re-lipsticks her kissing lips
From a small tortoiseshell compact.
David Jones May 2009
Complain about this comment
re EUROPEAN painted ladies. In NW Mallorca week 11/18 May there were thousands of them in the well known birdwatching haunts,as well as on the NW island generally. Spectacular stream of thousands in the Parc Albufera on 16 May when for about 10 minutes they streamed by without any sign of the stream stopping. An unusual feature was that they seemed paler coloured than in England. Newly hatched ?
Complain about this comment
One or two painted lady butterflies here in Bury but I have seen larger numbers while I have been doing my volunteer stints over at Marshside near Southport.
Complain about this comment
I live in Drongan, Ayrshire in SW Scotland. Having just voted earlier this morning, a Painted Lady landed on a patch of clover outside the polling station. It truly is a beautiful butterfly.
Complain about this comment
Heard a Cuckoo in the watermeadows by the river Stour, at Longham, Ferndown, Dorset. Heard a second one singing cuck,cuck,cuck a few times before it finished off with the oo bit. That was at 11.35am today.
Complain about this comment
One just this minute in my garden in Prestonpans, East Lothian in Scotland. The colours were a bit worse for wear but markings still defined.
Complain about this comment
The place to see the Painted Ladies is the North Coast of Cornwall in St.Ives Bay between the Hayle Estuary and Godrevy,facing Godrevy Lighthouse. My wife and I have never experienced so many butterflies of this Species.The dunes/cliffs were literally fluttering at the end of May.
Complain about this comment
we were on the beach at Borth when we saw hundreds of painted lady butterflys flying across the Irish sea and over the beach towards land.Why would they be doing that?
Complain about this comment
I was getting my washing in and a painted lady fluttered by and landed on the wall to soak up the sun, I live just outside Edinburgh.
Complain about this comment
These beauties appeared all over Caithness and in the Orkneys over the weekend too. What a sight.
Complain about this comment
I saw more than 100 painted ladies within 30 minutes fluttering around in Aberystwyth university back on the 28th May and again whilst kayaking around the coast at Aberystwyth on Sunday, there were numerous ones heading inland coming from a westerly direction.
Complain about this comment
I have recently visited Tropical World in Leeds - and i have purchase a butterfly 'watch them grow'. Helps children see the life cycle of the butterfly.
You get a hatching net and a code - you type the code on a website - this orders your caterpillars.
You receive 5 caterpillars which turn into the Painted lady butterflies.
Maybe one of the reasons for lots being around.
Complain about this comment
We saw masses of painted ladies on Friday 29 May as we were walking through the fields and moors around Chipping in the Forest of Bowland, Lancashire.
Complain about this comment
last week I had several of these butterflies which seemed to be mating ? could that be right ?? a frenzy of activity.I am in Dorset.
Complain about this comment
Having just returned from 2 weeks birdwatching in Menorca thought you might be interested to know the island was covered in Painted Lady butterflies and also thousands of their caterpillars which we photographed hanging from hedgerows and forming "curtains" !!
Complain about this comment
I'm situated on the northeast edge of the New Forest, and in my garden,a flowering shrub was covered in painted ladies. I counted at least 30 in under a minute, and there were more flying in - just stunning!
Complain about this comment
There was a Painted Lady butterfly in my garden for several days last week (maybe not always the same one!) - Carmarthenshire
Complain about this comment
The painted ladies have finally arrived in Grampound, Cornwall. We had half a dozen fluttering around us yesterday evening.
Complain about this comment
Hi
I live in S W France and we too are seeing loads more Painted Lady butterflies. My question is: WHY do some migrating butterflies and birds choose to stop off in France whilst others make that last attempt to reach Britain. What tells them that they have a bit further to go?
Also, on Thursday's Springwatch you read out letters about Kamikaze birds - flying into windows. We had the same problem here in France. After a really upsetting death of a Hawfinch, we installed mosquito blinds and they did the trick - no more deaths by flying! The blinds deflect the mirror image and any birds just bounce off - like a sort of bird trampoline!
The programe is fantastic and ALL the presenters are very entertaining. Wish you could do a programme in France too!
Complain about this comment
I dont think you have seen this unususl nest, and it is amasing....
http://www.flickr.com/photos/esneri/
I posted it a while ago and it's a real pity because you had part of a program on bees and this nest sent off four swarms the first weekend in June - a pretty positive story considering the state of the bee population at the moment.
Mary
Complain about this comment
We thinks we have had one of the most northerly sightings of migrating Painted Ladies across Britain.
We are just back from a holiday in Sutherland. While we have not seen Painted Ladies in any number where we live in central Scotland, last weekend we saw them coming ashore across the beaches of Sutherland, at Oldshoremore and Sandwood Bay (the most northerly beach on Britain's west coast, just a few miles south of Cape Wrath).
We saw 15 coming ashore as we walked this mile-long beach, with dozens more on our five mile-mile walk across the moorland to the east. There was a strong southerly wind blowing for several days, and many must have missed land altogether.
Complain about this comment
Last weekend saw numerous Painted Ladies and small Tortoiseshells in my mother's garden in Streatham, London. This is a first for me to see Painted Ladies in London and it's some years since seeing small Tortoiseshells.... such a delight.
Many thanks BBC for your wonderful Spring Watch and all your nature programmes.
Complain about this comment
Visited the island of St. Kilda on Wednesday 3rd. June a wonderful day and saw painted lady butterflies there too.
Complain about this comment
Loads of painted lady butterflies in my garden too.
Alos lots of different bees - it's lovely to see the garden so alive.
Complain about this comment
Managed to photograph one yesterday at Tentsmuir NNR near St Andrews in Fife.
Complain about this comment
Bank holiday weekend 24th May saw about a dozen painted ladies on the coast path near Cardigan. Perfect.
Complain about this comment
I've just spent a week in Llandudno, North Wales. The Great Orme was absolutely smothered in Painted Ladies and also in a very small blue butterfly which I think was a Common Blue.
Complain about this comment
Small movement of Painted Ladies again to-day over Beeston Regis Common, Sheringham Norfolk. A steady movement to the the northwest similar to that on May 24th, the butterflies flying low and straight and as singles separated 4 or 5m apart.
Some great dragonflies on the pond too - Broad-bodied Chasers and Emperor Dragonflies.
Complain about this comment
Great Springwatch programes. I wish there was more stuff on invertebrates they do get overlooked. I work at Cranford Countryside Park next to Heathrow. We have 144 acres of ancient woodland and hay meadows plus the river Crane. We too have breeding Skylark and our last butterfly count had 35 Large Skippers. Our nicest recent sighting was on a moth trap session we had Great Oak Beauty,a Nationally Notable B species and an ancient woodland indicator.
Other nice things have been Black -Headed Cardinal, Beetle Polychroa coccinea and the Sabre Wasp, Rhyssa persuasoria, the latter flying up and down a scots pine trunk. Our single bee orchid in the cellar field failed to grow but another popped up in the Church Meadow as compensation! In front of my house in Borehamwood I had 40 Painted Lady Butterflies on the Sedum a few weeks ago.At night there were some Silver Y moths at Cranford Mother Shipton Moth and at both home and Cranford the Marmalade Hoverfly, Episyrphus balteatus indicating large scale insect migration.
Cranford this year had 4 pairs of Great Spotted Woodpecker, 2 nests were only 30metres apart and nesting (I think) Sparrowhawk. Female displayed and called over Northern woodland repeatidly. 2 pairs of kestrel breeding on site.
simrobtick
Complain about this comment
Whilst preparing to sit on sun-lounger around two hours ago >> I suddenly spotted a "Painted Lady Butterfly" enjoying whatever she was seekng on one of my flowering plants >> such a beautiful butterfly without doubt. I have lived here in this very Welsh rural area of Powys for over twenty years & though having a extra large garden to my certain knowledge this is my first sighting of the butterfly within the boundries of garden.
Complain about this comment
I saw quite a few painted lady butterflies around Hackney Marshes on the weekend of 23rd 24th May this year, near the Waterworks nature reserve next to the River Lea
Complain about this comment
Saw 2 painted ladies this afternoon - NOrth Kessock, Inverness
Complain about this comment
I've never seen so many Painted Lady's! This was at Ken-Dee Marshes on the 31st May...great to see.
Complain about this comment
I teach at a primary school in Nottinghamshire and we have hatched out pinted lady buuterflies in the classrooms. We have since released about 20 and there are more that are still in chrysalis state. If other schools are doing the same thing no wonder there are so many around.
Complain about this comment
I saw a painted lady in my garden last week, it was there nearly all day flying around and sunbathing on the rocks.
Complain about this comment
I have purchased painted ladies from the internet now for the past two years. You buy the butteffly net and 5 to 10 caterpillars will be sent to you. The kids can see the the caterpillars eating and growing with their own food. Last night one of our butterflies emerged from their crysalis,we are now waiting for the other 4 to emerge and then you can release them in your garden and watch them return. Try it.
Complain about this comment
I realise this is slightly off topic but might interest all anyway.
While exploring the Painted Canyon in the Mecca Hills near Palm Springs California in April 1995 I came across a similar migration of these butterflies. The canyon is quite narrow and when the sun reached a group of green shrubs fairly early in the morning the shrubs began to shed hundreds of butterflies. I photographed them on the shrubs,and in the air. Later in the day as I drove towards Joshua Tree National Park there were so many that I could not help hitting some with my car.
Later on that summer we had a mass migration of Painted Ladies move through Alberta - some 1700 miles to the north of where I saw them in California.
Apparently they had come from Mexico. They too migrated in several generations. I never did hear if or when they migrated back to the south.
By the way I love Springwatch - I get to watch when I am in England visiting my father. I wish I could see more on the internet here - but videos and webcams are not available in Canada - shame.
Complain about this comment
I live in South West Wales, near the border of Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire. We have recently seen large numbers of Painted Ladies in our garden, orchard and fields. They're beautiful and it's so lovely to see them.
Complain about this comment
Our primary school in Balham buys caterpillars mail order each year for the nursery and reception classes. We release them into the wild when they become painted lady butterflies. I see earlier on in the blog that other schools do too. We have been doing it for nearly 10 years now, so that is one possible cause for such a growth in the population.
Complain about this comment
I tried repeatedly to register my Coockoo sighting in Northumberland.
does anyone know if I can still register it and where.
thanks
Complain about this comment
What has happen to the Paited lady they were caround for a week or so now not a one to be seen????
Complain about this comment
it was a sight i just could not believe, hundreds and i do mean hundreds of catapillars crawling down the road all going in the same direction where we live in Wales, unfortunatly loads of these poor little things were run over, but i have managed to pick about a dozen up, put them in a large jar with daily fresh nettle and thistle leaves, but how long do i need to do this before they change into catalysts. please can anyone advise me first why would they all walk in the same direction and how long and where can i put the ones i have saved.
Complain about this comment
I recently have seen two Painted Ladies on the Gower coast in South Wales in the past couple of weeks. They really are stunning and it's nice to know at least some someone is benefitting from the wet weather-aswell as their cousins(the red admirals), albeit on the other side of the world.
Complain about this comment
View these comments in RSS