Papilio multicaudata

Two-tailed Swallowtail
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Papilionidae
Tribe: Papilionini
Genus: Papilio
Species: P. multicaudata
Binomial name
Papilio multicaudata
W.F. Kirby, 1884
Subspecies

3 ssp., see text
Synonyms

P. multicaudatus

The Two-tailed Swallowtail (Papilio multicaudata) is a species of the Papilionidae family found in western North America from British Columbia to Central America.[1]

Contents

Description

Its appearance is similar to the Giant Swallowtail, Western, and Eastern Tiger Swallowtails, but has thinner and fewer black stripes on the wings and the hind wing has two tails. The Two-tailed Swallowtail has distinctive yellow wings with a black tiger striping. Each hindwing has several blue markings (top and bottom). The eyespots can fool predators into attacking the rear of the butterfly instead of the head, giving the butterfly a chance to escape. The wingspan of this particular species is 68 to 104 mm (2.7 to 4.1 in) making it the largest swallowtail in western North America.[1][2]

The butterfly can be seen from Guatemala, through Mexico, the western United States to southern Canada in southern British Columbia, Alberta and southwestern Saskatchewan. It typically lives near streams and in moist valleys but also in canyons and cities at lower elevations lower elevations.[1][3]

Host plants include: chokecherry, bitter cherry, Arizona rosewood, single-leaf ash, hoptree, and Arizona Sycamore.[3]

Larvae feed on chokeberry, willow (Salix spp.), cherry (Prunus spp.), poplar (Populus spp.), and ash (Fraxinus spp.).[1][4]

The Two-tailed Swallowtail is the state butterfly of Arizona.[3]

Life cycle

Adults fly during spring and summer and there is 1 brood. Females lay eggs singly on the host plant. The caterpillar will fold the host plants leaves and tie them together with silk they will then eat from this structure. The pupae will over winter then emerge in May.

Subspecies

Listed alphabetically.[5]

References

  1. ^ a b c d Canadian Tiger Swallowtail, Butterflies of Canada
  2. ^ Two-tailed Swallowtail, BugGuide
  3. ^ a b c http://www.toddshikingguide.com/FloraFauna/Fauna52.htm [Accessed May 2008]
  4. ^ Kaufman, Kenn; Brock, Jim P. (2003). "Swallowtails". Kaufman Field Guide to Butterflies of North America. Houghton Mifflin Books. pp. 20–21. ISBN 978-0-618-76826-4. 
  5. ^ Papilio, funet.fi