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Painted Lady Butterfly

Vanessa cardui

Photo by James McNair
Published on Project Noah
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28.5364, -81.0176

Field Notes

Description:

Upperside with uneven brown, yellow, and orange pattern. Forewing with a black apical patch, a small white spot in the orange field below the patch, and a white bar at the leading edge of the forewing. Underside of hindwing with two large eyespots. Winter form is smaller and paler, summer form larger with brighter coloring.
Wing Span: 1 3/4 - 2 5/8 inches (4.5 - 6.7 cm).

http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species/Vanessa-virginiensis

Species ID Suggestions

Painted Lady

Vanessa cardui

Comments (4)

This link provides a great resource. http://bugguide.net/node/view/236368
The jagged, brown medial line on the fore wing distinguishes this butterfly as the similar Painted Lady
Keith thank you. What do you base your ID suggestion on over the American Lady? They are very similar and by wing morphology it appears to me to be the American Lady

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