Did you know the Bay Area is under siege right now? It's true. The invader? Thousands and thousands of pudy butterflies. Why, just today we received an urgent message from SFist Deborah N about hundreds of colorful, frolicking butterflies swarming up Lapu Lapu. We've also heard reports of butterfly sightings from the Sunnyside neighborhood to Crissy Field.

According to San Jose Mercury News, "thousands, perhaps millions of painted lady butterflies are migrating through the Bay Area this month, on their way north from where they hatched in Southern California desert areas." Many Bay Area residents, it seems, have spotted "clouds of butterflies everywhere" this week.

This is soft news at its finest, folks. Not to be missed. So, if you happen to snap a shot of a few monarchs or painted ladies, send them to SFist. We'll show them off to the world. Simply tag said butterfly images in Flickr with 'sfist,' or just email them to [email protected].

Preference will be given to shots of people being chased and/or attacked by the winged creatures. The more creative, the better.

Hop to it, readers.