British skies are bathing in beauty.
Residents of the UK and Ireland have been noticing a massive uptick in the amount of painted ladies hovering around lately — and not the kind one used to find in Times Square.
An influx of the “painted lady” — or Vanessa cardui — butterfly species has the nations all aflutter over what experts believe is a once-in-a-decade phenomenon caused a by a perfect storm of ideal living conditions, the BBC reports.
A combination of prime weather and ideal food sources creates a great environment for the orange-winged beauties, and so they can currently be spotted in far greater numbers than usual.
The last huge emergence of the colorful insects was in 2009, which was unofficially dubbed “painted lady year” in response to the some 11 million of the bugs estimated to have been spotted that year.
Simon Milne, who works at Edinburgh’s Royal Botanic Garden, predicts that the 2019 influx could be record-breaking.
Watch as thousands of Painted Lady butterflies descended on #Hartlepool Headland yesterday.
Take part in the world's biggest survey of butterflies: https://t.co/2y19tFBxVR
Thanks to @smilehartlepool for the incredible footage. #ButterflyCountpic.twitter.com/RMbre9Zaq0
— Butterfly Conservation 🦋 (@savebutterflies) July 30, 2019
Social media also has seen a correspondent influx of painted lady photo postings as Brits are taken by the bugs.
“[Come] early autumn, we could be up to our knees in them,” Tom Prescott, senior officer with Butterfly Concervation Stotland, told the BBC of the infrequent fliers.
Despite their exquisite wings, painted ladies are capable of migrating up to 100 miles a day and frequently lay their eggs on thistle.
This phenomenon, however, is far from reflective of current butterfly health in general: Many species are in fact in decline, according to research from the Butterfly Conservation Society. A five-year report last published in 2015 found that 70 percent of species are seeing a drop in numbers.
Spotted lots of butterflies this summer? Take part in the Big #ButterflyCount by downloading the free app and help @savebutterflieshttps://t.co/8Ew9euZFVl#conservationpic.twitter.com/KxEDcHW2tD
— Crimestoppers (@CrimestoppersUK) August 4, 2019
