Joe, Son of the Rock's photos with the keyword: Vanessa Cardui

This butterfly is widely distributed all over the Northern hemisphere, and can be seen in all types of habitats except dense forests. Painted ladies lay their eggs on many different plants, and their larvae feed on a wider variety of plants (polyphagus) than most other butterfly species. Even though they are often thought of as the thistle butterfly, and a majority of their eggs are laid on thistles, the larvae feed and can be reared on a varied number of plants and plant types, in several different families. Quoted from Wikipedia .