Scientists from the University of Ottawa, Uppsala University, the Institut Botànic de Barcelona, and other institutions have tracked the migratory feats of the painted lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui).

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about biodiversity and the hidden quirks of the natural world. The painted lady butterfly—or Vanessa cardui—is a traveler ...

“Can the flap of a butterfly's wings in Brazil cause a tornado in Texas?” wondered mathematician Edward Lorenz, one of the fathers of chaos theory. Our world is deeply interconnected, and every ...

A broadly distributed migratory butterfly travels varying distances, influenced by environmental conditions rather than following genetically coded instructions, according to a study. The ...

Each year, painted lady butterflies (Vanessa cardui) travel thousands of kilometers between Africa and Europe in search of suitable breeding conditions. A new study, involving researchers from the ...

The painted lady has a wingspan of 2-3 inches. The painted lady has a wingspan of 2-3 inches. Video courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ...