Adult red admirals occur most frequently during summer. They over-winter as adults, so can be seen on warm winter days. They are long lived, surviving up to six months in the summer, and perhaps nine months for those which overwinter. The adults feed on nectar from various plant species (native and introduced) and occasionally on seepage of sap. They are strong fliers, but their short flights when feeding and ovipositing are very erratic. Flights over water or mountain ranges are straight and fast, characteristic of a migrating butterfly, but no migration within New Zealand has been reported.