In Brief
Butterfly with Migration History
During the mass migration journeys of the butterfly commonly known as Painted Lady, hundreds of naturalists have collected a total of 60,000 observations regarding its migration behaviour. In one season, this butterfly covers up to 15,000 kilometres. However, this is not the distance covered by a single butterfly. Rather, the species uses its high rate of reproduction: The distance between West Africa and Scandinavia is covered by a succession of up to four generations, whereas it needs only two generations to travel back south. The study involved the Helmholtz Centre of Environmental Research - UFZ and its cooperation partners science4you as well as the Gesellschaft für Schmetterlingsschutz (GfS - Society for the Protection of Butterflies).
