Spicebush Swallowtail

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Spicebush Swallowtail
Spicebush Swallowtail(Papilio troilus)
Spicebush Swallowtail(Papilio troilus)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Papilionidae
Subfamily: Papilioninae
Tribe: Papilionini
Genus: Papilio
Species: P. troilus
Binomial name
Papilio troilus
Linnaeus, 1775

The Spicebush Swallowtail (Papilio troilus) is a fairly black swallowtail found in North America. It is the state butterfly of Mississippi.

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[edit] Description

Adults can be identified by their spoon-shaped tails and by their bright green (male) or iridescent blue (female) hind-wings. Ivory spots may be visible on the forewings, and orange spots may appear on the hindwings. Wingspan may be 3 to 4 inches.

Spicebush Swallowtail, Papilio troilus
Spicebush Swallowtail, Papilio troilus


[edit] Range

The Spicebush Swallowtail is found only in the Eastern US and extreme southern Ontario, with occasional strays in the American Midwest and even Cuba.

[edit] Habitat

This primarily black swallowtail is normally found in deciduous woods or woody swamps, where they can be found flying low and fast through shaded areas.

[edit] Life cycle

Spicebush Swallowtail caterpillar
Spicebush Swallowtail caterpillar

The caterpillars live in folded leaf shelters and eat the leaves of the sassafras or spicebush. Adults consume a variety of nectars, including those from azalea, Japanese honeysuckle, milkweed, and thistle flowers.

Both sexes are thought to be edible mimics of the distasteful Pipevine Swallowtail.

[edit] In popular culture

The caterpillar of this butterfly was made popular by Caterpie from Pokémon. Also, Sloan, a character in the anime "Medabots," once dressed up as the caterpillar of this butterfly during a fancy dress party.

[edit] External links

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