red admirals

[Tony Hoare]

In article <6gaq2k$5042$1 at newssvr04-int.news.prodigy.com>, Sally
Levinson <MYTZ14A at prodigy.com> writes
>Hi!
>
>Has anyone ever seen a red admiral that was actually RED?  Around here,
>they all have orange stripes.  But I have heard that in places that the
>caterpillars feed on nettle, not pellitory, they actually have red
>stripes. Is that true?  I always wonder about how these insects get names
>that don't make sense to me...
>
>Sally
>
The name Red Admiral was given in the United Kingdom, where the
butterfly is most certainly red and feeds on nettles.
Names are slippery things, as you will have seen if you read this group
regularly.  English names given to the same species can differ between
countries and the scientists are always fiddling with the latin names.
Pity the international butterfly lover.
All the best
Tony Hoare