Butterflies arriving from Africa in large numbers.

It was reported last week that the Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui) butterfly was being spotted in exceptionally large volumes in Finland. Their parents had set off from North Africa in February / March, reproducing en-route, with their offspring reaching Finland and Northern Europe. 

The Painted Lady is a large butterfly (wing span 5-9 cm) and is identified by the black and white corners of its mainly deep orange, black-spotted wings. It has 5 white spots in the black forewing tips and while the orange areas may be pale here and there, there are no clean white dots in them. The hind wings carry 4 small submarginal eyespots on dorsal and ventral sides. Those on the dorsal side are black,

     
The Painted Lady butterfly is a regular visitor to Finland, but it is not able to winter in the country.
The migration volumes vary greatly from one year to the next. Last summer only a few individuals were spotted in Finland.