Red Admirals in the Siwa Oasis

February 13, 2017

On February 4, 2017, I saw three Red Admirals when visiting Cleopatra's Spring in the Siwa Oasis in northwest Egypt. These were all larger individuals and at least two of them were partly worn and had some wing damage. Had these butterflies been migrants from Europe, or are they part of an overwintering generation that was born here?

--Royce Bitzer, February 13, 2017