Complete Guide To The Palamedes Swallowtail Butterfly
Palamedes Swallowtail Butterfly
Palamedes Swallowtail Butterfly Images
Palamedes Swallowtail butterfly Papilio palamedes. Photograph taken by the author. Copyright Now I Wonder.
Palamedes Swallowtail butterfly Papilio palamedes. Photograph taken by the author. Copyright Now I Wonder.
Palamedes Swallowtail butterfly Papilio palamedes. Photograph taken by the author. Copyright Now I Wonder.
Pickerelweed plant Pontedaria cordata. Photograph taken by the author. Copyright Now I Wonder.
How To Identify Palamedes Swallowtail Butterflies
- Wingspan: 3.0 – 5.5 inches (7.6 – 14 cm)
- Palamedes Swallowtails are black butterflies that have:
- Above:
- Black wings, with two rows of yellow spots along the fore wing and hind wing margins.
- Yellow spots on the hind wings that merge to form a thick, continuous band.
- Below:
- A narrow yellow stripe on each hind wing that runs parallel to the abdomen, close to the wing base.
- Above:
- Adults fly between March and October and are most common in the eastern parts of the state.
- Look for adult Palamedes Swallowtails in and near evergreen swamps and woodlands, especially on Pickerelweed (Pontedaria cordata).
Palamedes Swallowtail butterfly Papilio palamedes labelled with field marks that identify the species. Photograph taken by the author. Copyright Now I Wonder.
Palamedes Swallowtail butterfly Papilio palamedes labelled with field marks that identify the species. Photograph taken by the author. Copyright Now I Wonder.
How to Find Palamedes Swallowtail Butterflies
- Flight Season: Palamedes Swallowtail butterflies breed several times every season and fly from late March to mid-October in North Carolina.
- They live in the Atlantic coastal plain.
- Individual Palamedes Swallowtails survive North Carolina’s winters as pupae within their leathery, waterproof chrysalises.
- Some may survive mild winters as caterpillars, which is unusual for butterflies (Pyle 1981).
- Look for adult Palamedes Swallowtail butterflies near rivers, streams, and evergreen swamps (Daniels 2003) in the eastern part of North Carolina, close to the coast.
- They are especially common in and near the North Carolina’s Great Dismal Swamp.
- Palamedes Swallowtails are especially fond of nectar from Pickerelweed (Pontedaria cordata).
Palamedes Swallowtail Butterfly Classification
- An older name for the Palamedes Swallowtail butterfly species is “Pterourus palamedes” (Pyle 1981).
|
Phylum |
Arthropoda |
|
Class |
Insecta |
|
Order |
Lepidoptera |
|
Family |
Papilionidae (Swallowtail and Parnassian Butterflies) |
|
Genus |
Papilio |
|
Species |
P. palamedes |
Binomial Name |
Papilio palamedes |
