Vanessa cardui is a species of colorful butterflies known as Painted Lady. This species is also nicknamed Cosmopolitan in North America.
V. cardui is one of the most widespread butterfly species. These butterflies are present on every continent except Antarctica and South America. In Australia, the distribution of V. cardui is limited around Bunbury, Fremantle, and Rottnest Island. However, his closest relative is Australian Painted Lady (Vanessa Kershawi, sometimes considered a subspecies) spread over more than half of the Australian continent. Other closely related species are the American Painted Lady (Vanessa virginiensis), and the West Coast Lady (Vanessa annabella).