Red-spotted Purple

This is a Red-spotted Purple butterfly, and one of the first of these beauties to put in an appearance. I discovered it in the backyard, where it was busy flying between the last of the Mountain Laurel blossoms and a scrub wild cherry that I was thinking seriously of cutting down before it decided to become a tree. I may be too late, since cherries are favored Limenitis arthemis caterpillar food and egg-laying may have already transpired. At first glance, it's pretty easy to mistake an RSP for one of the dark swallowtails, but once you get a good look, well, there are clearly no "tails" in evidence. According to my field guides, RSPs are actually supposed to be pretty uncommon around here, but I don't find that to be true. Almost every day of the summer, there's an RSP making itself known on my walks. This one, however, is unusual, in that it has those curious red lines on the top of the forewings—something I've never noticed before. Every day also brings a new discovery.