This is another butterfly sculpture presented by the Upper Valley Art Leaugue. Cache is not located on the sculpture.
Vanessa atalanta, the red admiral or previously, the red admirable,[2]is a well-characterized, medium-sized butterfly with black wings, orange bands, and white spots. It has a wingspan of about 2 inches (5 cm).[3] It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae. The red admiral is widely distributed across temperate regions of North Africa, the Americas, Europe, Asia, the Caribbean, and New Zealand.[4] It resides in warmer areas, but migrates north in spring and sometimes again in autumn. Typically found in moist woodlands, the red admiral caterpillar's primary host plant is the stinging nettle (Urtica dioica); it can also be found on the false nettle (Boehmeria cylindrica).[5] The adult butterfly drinks from flowering plants like Buddleia and overripe fruit. Red admirals are territorial; females will only mate with males that hold territory. Males with superior flight abilities are more likely to successfully court females.
The red admiral is found in temperate regions of North Africa, North and Central America, Europe, Asia, and island regions of Hawaii, the Caribbean, and New Zealand.[4]
In northern Europe, it is one of the last butterflies to be seen before winter sets in, often feeding on the flowers of ivy on sunny days. The red admiral is also known to hibernate,[6]re-emerging individuals showing prominently darker colors than the first brood. The butterfly also flies on sunny winter days, especially in southern Europe.
In North America, the red admiral generally has two broods from March through October. Most of North America must be recolonized each spring by southern migrants, but the species over winters in south Texas.
The red admiral is identified by its striking black, orange, and white wing pattern. On the dorsal side, its dark wings possess orange bands on the middle of the forewings and the outer edge of the hindwings. The distal ends of the forewings contain white spots. The ventral side of the wings are brown with patches of red, white, and black. The hindwings have a brown marbled pattern. The red admiral has summer and winter morphs. Summer red admirals are larger and more pigmented than winter morphs. The wingspan ranges from 1.75 to 2.50 inches (4.4 to 6.4 cm).