In the spring of 2019, Southern California experienced a mass migration of painted lady butterflies as they left their winter home in the deserts to the south and set off for their annual trip to the Pacific Northwest where they live in the summer. Painted lady butterflies live all over the world, on every continent except Australia.In the spectacular PBS Nature video Sex, Lies, and Butterflies, the story of their migration from Africa to Europe is told, along with many other amazing facts about all kinds of butterflies. Here is the blurb for the video:
Butterflies have been making our planet more interesting and beautiful for more than 50 million years, and today a dazzling array of nearly 20,000 different species inhabit the globe. Nature: Sex, Lies and Butterflies follows the lives of these incredible and important insects from egg to caterpillar to chrysalis to the emergence of the mature winged creature. This vibrant new Nature special explores the astonishing survival techniques of butterflies, including their 360° vision, deceptive camouflage, chemical weaponry, and fantastic flight across continents. Through sophisticated macro-filming, viewers get a rare glimpse beyond the butterflies’ bright colors and fragile beauty as they follow them on one of the greatest migrations on Earth. Narrated by Paul Giamatti.
You can read about a kindergarten class raising painted lady caterpillars in my book BUTTERFLIES IN ROOM 6: Watching Them Grow.
