| UK BAP status: | Not listed |
| Local status: | A migrant, arriving directly from North Africa and the Middle East. Continental offspring may arrive later. Numbers vary each year.
It breeds here but does not overwinter. |
| Size: | Large. |
| Larval foodplant: | Mainly Thistles, but Common Nettle, Mallows and Viper's-bugloss may also be used. |
| No. of broods: | Continuously brooded in North Africa and the Middle East. One or more broods occur here. (Home-bred individuals can fly in as little as a month from being an egg). |
| Flight time(s): | Immigrants begin to arrive late May and may occur throughout the summer. Numbers usually peak in August. |
| Winter: | Absent. Few, if any, survive in any life-stage. The absence of an apparent southerly emigration in the autumn (unlike the Red Admiral) is a mystery. (What is the evolutionary advantage of the original immigration?) |
| Habits: | Fast and powerful fliers. Adults feed voraciously on flowers, knapweed being a favourite. |
| Habitats: | Anywhere nectar and larval foodplants may be found. |
