Painted lady
Well, at least they can't shoot this one
We don’t see many butterflies in the garden because of all the crop-spraying that goes on around us. It kills the ‘bad’ insects but it kills the good ones, too. So yesterday afternoon, while out watering, I was thrilled to see lots of painted ladies. It seems like years since I’ve last seen one, and I was very surprised.
This morning I read in Malta Today that thousands of them are migrating over Malta from Africa right now. The story said that red admirals and small whites usually migrate with painted ladies, and then I remembered that as a child on picnics I would always see these three types together.
Compared to the birds and the people coming in off boats, it’s good to have migrants which are completely uncontroversial. And I don’t have to worry about them getting shot.
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Lucky you! It seems painted ladies do not fly over Zurrieq – well I don’t actually have a garden, only some pot plants.
What we don’t see much of either are ladybirds. Anyone knows what plants attract these colourful insects that also get rid of garden pests?
[Daphne – We don’t have any ladybirds because of the crop-spraying problem I mentioned. Fortunately, the crop-spraying has wiped out the tick population – the garden used to be teeming with them, and I had to spend a small fortune on Frontline spray for the dogs – and it seems to have dampened down the sandfly problem, too. But the downside is that there are no attractive insects – only one dragonfly on the pond so far – and this in turn has affected the chameleon population. We used to have so many of them, but no more. I also know when hedgehogs can’t find enough insects to eat, because they begin risking their lives by heading towards the dog-bowl at night. If you’ve never tried wresting a tightly-curled hedgehog from a dog’s jaw, I don’t recommend it. Between the fangs and the spines…..]
These painted ladies are so beautiful! I remember once, when I was just a child, my Dad and I were taking a stroll on the clay cliffs of Ghajn Tuffieha, just around this time, when we spotted a huge swarm of painted ladies taking shelter at the side of that monumental rock that sits on top the cliffs. There were literally hundreds maybe even thousands! I remember I was so thrilled to see such a large cloud of butterflies, that I wanted to run among them, but my dad wisely told me to let them be. It’s one of my dearest childhood memories.
There Daphne. See how much you’re missing out on by not coming to the theatre. Had a play a year ago about butterflies . . . Only our butterflies were brain-addling drugs . . . so maybe you’re right to keep away from the theatre after all. By any chance, will you be attending the National Theatre link up at St James Cavalier for Phaedra starring Helen Mirren? Go on! No excuses on this one!
I found this article about migrating butterflies to be the most interesting one in all today’s newspapers. Simply loved it.
Apologies Daphne, your contribution today comes in second place…
Cheers
Amazing!
@ Jo
Try lantana – the colourful flowers are very attractive to butterflies. It works for me. They also make a lovely addition in summer when everything else is drying out
I had a similar experience when my husband I walked up to Il- Fanal ta’ Gordan limits of Ghasri in Gozo, and it was teeming with these beautiful butterflies. I hadn’t seen such a large amount since we were children running in our grandparents’ fields in Zebbiegh. It is such a pity that we and our children are missing out on nature because of pest control and other pollution.