This is Vanessa cardui (Linnaeus, 1758). According the Los Angeles Butterfly Survey page, "I [the Painted Lady] am the most widespread butterfly in the world. I am very often seen flying in massive numbers throughout the L.A. area, on my emigration from Mexico." However, one, and only one, such creature has been flitting around my back yard over the last few days, mostly near the Curry Plant and Blue Agave (both pictured here), but also around the Rhubarb, Tomatoes, and Fennel.
I've had a heck of a time taking a picture because this Painted Lady is so, so flitty and/or fluttery. There's been sitting and waiting, then more sitting and waiting. Meanwhile, this butterfly has been all over the place, almost never landing or perching for more than a second, and always nowhere near me.
But today, perhaps in celebration of Fathers' Day and the burning off of this morning's June-gloomy marine layer, the Painted Lady came and landed about a foot from me, right at knee level. A little reward.
It's funny, this reminds me of two fortune cookie fortunes I was happy to receive a couple days ago:
While these are, perhaps, applicable to (a.) my wish to take a picture of the Painted Lady and (b.) my efforts to be still enough and patient enough to do so, I hope I haven't used up my fortunateness on butterfly photography. I have a really super-important going-on going on tomorrow, and I definitely need every possible wish granting and effort worthwhilery in relation to that — a situation involving serious, prolonged efforts as well as a truly long delay. Maybe the Painted Lady's visitation is another good omen?
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