Vanessa cardui Vanessa cardui Vanessa cardui is a well-known colorful butterfly, known as the painted lady, or in North America as the cosmopolitan. "V. cardui" is one of the most widespread of all butterflies, found on every continent except Antarctica and South America. In Australia, "V. cardui" has a limited range around Bunbury, Fremantle, and Rottnest Island. However, its close relative, the Australian painted lady ("V. kershawi", sometimes considered a subspecies) ranges over half the continent. Other closely related species are the American painted lady ("V. virginiensis") and the West Coast lady ("V. annabella"). "V. cardui" occurs in any temperate zone, including
Vanessa atalanta Vanessa atalanta Vanessa atalanta, the red admiral or previously, the red admirable, is a well-characterized, medium-sized butterfly with black wings, orange bands, and white spots. It has a wingspan of about . It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of "Systema Naturae". The red admiral is widely distributed across temperate regions of North Africa, the Americas, Europe, Asia, and the Caribbean. It resides in warmer areas, but migrates north in spring and sometimes again in autumn. Typically found in moist woodlands, the red admiral caterpillar's primary host plant is the stinging nettle ("Urtica dioica"); it