Painted lady
Vanessa cardui
Butterfly
The painted lady is a cosmopolitan, highly migratory brush-footed butterfly and one of the most polyphagous butterflies known, with caterpillars recorded on over 100 plant species. Larvae feed chiefly on thistles and other Asteraceae, mallows (Malvaceae) including hollyhock, and members of the borage family (Boraginaceae), building silk nests on the host foliage. Adults are broad nectar generalists that readily visit composites, milkweeds, and many garden flowers.
Plan for this species
Location-fit plant set for Chicago, IL: host and specialist plants first, then nectar, fruit, seed, foliage, and shelter plants that still fit the current and mid-century climate read.
4 essential relationships / 2 supporting plants
Host/specialist links: 4
Forage/pollination links: 2
Shelter links: 0
Relationship roles: 2
Hollyhock
Essential / Larval host plants
Wisconsin extension and Animal Diversity Web name hollyhock (Alcea, Malvaceae) as a documented Vanessa cardui larval host; caterpillars web the leaves.
Borage
Essential / Larval host plants
Boraginaceae is one of the primary V. cardui larval host families (BAMONA / Wisconsin extension); borage (Borago officinalis) is cited in some accounts. Kept conservative as plausible.
Hardy hibiscus
Essential / Larval host plants
Malvaceae genus-level inference: V. cardui larvae use mallow-family hosts broadly (LBJ Wildflower Center names native Hibiscus); H. moscheutos not species-cited.
Rose of Sharon
Essential / Larval host plants
Malvaceae (Hibiscus syriacus) genus-level inference; mallow family is a primary V. cardui larval host family, but this species is not specifically documented.
Anise hyssop
Supporting / Nectar plants
UW-Madison Horticulture lists anise hyssop (Agastache) among adult painted lady nectar plants.
Blue sea holly
Supporting / Nectar plants
A strong nectar plant for butterflies: painted ladies are among the butterflies that throng the steel-blue heads at the height of summer.
Plants in the catalog
Larval host plants · 5
Boraginaceae is one of the primary V. cardui larval host families (BAMONA / Wisconsin extension); borage (Borago officinalis) is cited in some accounts. Kept conservative as plausible.
Thistle-tribe Asteraceae: thistles are a primary documented V. cardui host group and larvae are recorded eating artichoke/cardoon (Cynara); kept conservative as plausible.
Malvaceae genus-level inference: V. cardui larvae use mallow-family hosts broadly (LBJ Wildflower Center names native Hibiscus); H. moscheutos not species-cited.
Wisconsin extension and Animal Diversity Web name hollyhock (Alcea, Malvaceae) as a documented Vanessa cardui larval host; caterpillars web the leaves.
Malvaceae (Hibiscus syriacus) genus-level inference; mallow family is a primary V. cardui larval host family, but this species is not specifically documented.
Nectar plants · 30
The broad summer umbels offer accessible nectar to visiting butterflies such as the painted lady.
Generalist butterflies such as the painted lady nectar at accessible composite flowers; mapped as a representative butterfly visitor of this long-blooming sunny annual.
UW-Madison Horticulture lists anise hyssop (Agastache) among adult painted lady nectar plants.
Painted lady and other butterflies nectar on the flowers during the long summer-to-frost season; salvias are reliable butterfly nectar plants in hot, sunny positions.
A strong nectar plant for butterflies: painted ladies are among the butterflies that throng the steel-blue heads at the height of summer.
Painted ladies are wide-ranging generalist nectarers and a plausible visitor during the late-summer bloom window on both sides of the Atlantic.
Painted lady butterflies, which are cosmopolitan, work the sky-blue, phlox-like flowers for nectar - Cape plumbago is one of the best blue-flowered butterfly plants for a warm garden.
Painted ladies and other sun-loving butterflies nectar readily at the flat, accessible flower faces.
UW-Madison Horticulture names milkweed (Asclepias) among adult V. cardui nectar sources; common milkweed is the representative species.
UW-Madison Horticulture lists zinnias among adult Vanessa cardui nectar flowers.
The nectar-rich flowerheads are a favourite of painted-lady butterflies through early and mid summer.
UW-Madison Horticulture names cosmos as a documented adult nectar source for the painted lady.
UW-Madison Horticulture names blazing star (Liatris) as an adult nectar plant for the painted lady.
The flat-topped, easy-to-land-on flowerheads are a favourite nectar stop for butterflies such as the painted lady through the long summer-to-autumn bloom.
Painted ladies and other generalist butterflies nectar at the accessible daisy flowers; mapped as a representative butterfly visitor of this long-blooming sunny annual.
Painted ladies and other small-to-medium butterflies work the clustered florets for nectar through summer and fall; a general nectar visit rather than a documented specialist tie.
Painted lady and other butterflies nectar on the spikes during the long flowering season; lavenders in general are reliable butterfly nectar plants in hot, sunny positions.
A strong nectar plant for butterflies: painted ladies are among the butterflies that throng the blue globes in mid to late summer. (Goldfinches and other small birds also feed on the dried seedheads later in the season.)
A good butterfly plant: nectaring painted-lady butterflies are drawn to the blue summer flower spikes.
UW-Madison Horticulture names New England aster as an adult painted lady (Vanessa cardui) nectar plant.
Flowers are attractive to butterflies as a fall nectar source (NC State Extension).
Painted lady butterflies are frequent visitors to the late-season flowerheads.
A good butterfly nectar plant: painted ladies and other butterflies feed at the open white-and-yellow flowerheads through the summer, when ox-eye daisy is in full flower in meadows and rough grass.
Range
Breeds across virtually all of North America, recolonizing the U.S. and Canada each year via mass northward migrations out of northern Mexico and the southwestern deserts.
Sources & citations
Cite this page
Use this citation for the Plotwright wildlife record. Use the source cards below to explore the references that informed its taxonomy, range, conservation, host plants, foraging, and habitat.
Plotwright. (n.d.). Painted lady (Vanessa cardui). Retrieved 2026, August 20, from https://plotwright.com/wildlife/painted-lady
Sources used for this record
This record is compiled from the sources below.
BAMONA: Painted lady
Species profile for migration, range, polyphagous larval hosts, and adult nectar use.
MDC Field Guide: Painted lady
State agency species account used for identification detail, larval and adult food, and life-cycle timing. Missouri-scoped, so it is not cited for continental range.
Wikipedia: Vanessa cardui
Corroborating reference for cosmopolitan distribution, migration, host breadth, and generalist foraging.
GBIF: Vanessa cardui
GBIF returns an exact accepted match to Vanessa cardui (usageKey 4299368) in family Nymphalidae.
iNaturalist: Vanessa cardui
iNaturalist resolves Vanessa cardui to active taxon 48548, the painted lady.