Swallowtail Butterflies

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

Papilio glaucus

Picture taken June 6, 2007


Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Superclass Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Subclass Pterygota (Winged Insects)
Order Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)
Superfamily Papilionoidea (Butterflies)
Family Papilionidae (Swallowtails)
Subfamily Papilioninae
Genus Papilio
Species glaucus (Eastern Tiger Swallowtail)




Picture taken June 20, 2007

Wing span: 3 5/8 - 6 1/2 inches (9.2 - 16.5 cm).

Caterpillar hosts: Leaves of various plants including wild cherry (Prunus), sweetbay (Magnolia), basswood (Tilia), tulip tree (Liriodendron), birch (Betula), ash (Fraxinus), cottonwood (Populus), mountain ash (Sorbus), and willow (Salix).

Females lay eggs singly on host leaves. Caterpillars eat leaves and rest on silken mats in shelters of curled leaves. Chrysalids overwinter.

Habitat: Deciduous broadleaf woods, forest edges, river valleys, parks, and suburbs.


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