Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly

Western tiger swallowtail papilio rutulus lucas 1852.

Tiger swallowtail butterfly. Male eastern tiger swallowtails are always yellow while females may be yellow or black. Yellow and black and black and blue. The tiger swallowtail is a beautiful large butterfly usually in the range of 35 55 easily identified by its black tiger stripes. Tiger swallowtail is a large species of butterfly and the adult females are larger than the male counterparts.

Female offspring of dark form eastern tigers will also be dark in color. Unlike milkweed obsessed monarchs the eastern tiger swallowtail will lay eggs on a wide range of host plants. Upperside of hindwing with upper most marginal spot yellow or lacking. Females have a splash of iridescent blue wash on their tales while males do not.

Male is yellow with dark tiger stripes. Hindwing has narrow marginal spots and no orange tint except for 2 spots near end of. Swallowtail butterflies tiger swallowtail this magnificent family papilionidae of large butterflies is loved by many and includes more than 600 species worldwide. Aka tiger swallowtail this unique species of swallowtail is a quick and strong flier gliding when able.

Their butterfly life cycle also takes up to 2 months so the odds are stacked against northern gardeners wanting to raise them with fewer generations and more plants to search. This distasteful butterfly feeds on pipevine aristolochia spp and it is also mimicked by the black swallowtail spicebush swallowtail red spotted purple and female diana fritillary. Papilio glaucus the eastern tiger swallowtail is a species of swallowtail butterfly native to eastern north america. They are generally attracted to red and pink flowers borne on hardy plants.

It is one of the most familiar butterflies in the eastern united states where it is common in many different habitats. Underside of forewing with separate yellow spots forming marginal band. The tiger swallowtail butterfly papilio glaucus exhibits a female limited polymorphism for batesian mimicry and others such as the canadian tiger swallowtail papilio canadensis do not display any form of mimicry. The males are a bright yellow while the females can exhibit two different color forms.

Some female eastern tigers adopt a dark form with mostly black wings thus gaining protection from predators by resembling the pipevine swallowtail. It shares the same taxonomic family with other swallowtail butterflies such as the eastern western southern sahara giant black zebra spicebush short tailed two tailed. Hindwing of both female forms has a row of striking blue chevrons and an iridescent blue. It flies from spring to fall during which it produces two to three broods.