Have You Seen The Painted Ladies?

If you've been out and about much over the last week or two, especially in southern California, you may have noticed hundreds of fluttering gems filling the air.  Even in the Great Central Valley, the butterfly migration is underway.  The numbers of Painted Lady butterflies are particularly high this year as the butterflies undergo their annual migration, traveling from the deserts of southern California and Mexico to the Pacific Northwest.


This winter, high rainfall and suitable temperatures have created ideal conditions for annual wildflowers to germinate, bloom and flourish.  In fact, 2019 has already been labeled as another "super bloom" year in southern California!  If you can, don't miss the chance to get out to our deserts this spring and experience them in bloom!  I highly, highly recommend Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Joshua Tree National Park, and Carrizo Plain National Monument.  (But places closer to home are shaping up to bring big bunches of blooms also.  Try hiking in the Sierra Nevada foothills and the Coast Range while the weather is pleasant and the hills are green!)


But what does all of this have to do with butterflies?  The explosion of new plant growth provides an excellent food source for caterpillars.  In short, more rain = more annual wildflowers = more butterflies!


A fairly steady parade of Painted Ladies has been visiting the weeds wildflowers in our backyard over the last few days.  Take a few minutes to have a look outside and see what flutters by!


For more information on where and when to see the best wildflower blooms across California, check out the Theodore Payne Wild Flower Hotline.

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