Painted Lady Vanessa cardui

The other Lady. The migratory one. A bit larger and more flashy. Four spots on the exterior hindwing instead of two (you can see them here). Never has the small dot of white on the forewing orange. Has boom years. 2003 was a boom year. Really a fine, fast flying, yard-loving butterfly.

Close-up of the exterior. And, no, it is not stuck on the flower. An invisible crab spider has it in its clutches. Note the striking yellows and blues in the hindwing that you don't notice when it is fluttering around on the flowers. The American Lady lacks that red flush on the wing. This one has five spots in the wing row.