Spicebush Swallowtail

Papilio troilus

Summary 6

The Spicebush Swallowtail (Papilio troilus) is a common black swallowtail butterfly found in North America, also known as the Green-Clouded butterfly. It has two subspecies, Papilio troilus troilus and Papilio troilus ilioneus, the latter found mainly in the Florida peninsula. The spicebush swallowtail derives its name from its most common host plant, the spicebush, members of the genus Lindera.

North american ecology (us and canada) 7

Year-round resident in eastern North America as far north as southern Canada, with some migratory sections extending the range to the north and west (Scott 1986). Habitats are DECIDUOUS WOODLANDS. Host plants are largely restricted to a few species mostly in famiies, LAURACEAE and MAGNOLIACEAE. Hosts can be shrubs or trees. Eggs are laid on the host plant singly. Individuals overwinter as pupae. There are multiple flights each year with the approximate flight time MAY15-SEP15 in the northern part of the range and MAR1-DEC31 in the southern part of their range (Scott 1986).

Sources and Credits

  1. (c) 2011 Bill Stagnaro, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?seq_num=368509&one=T
  2. (c) Lisa Brown, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://www.flickr.com/photos/33695431@N00/2686733639
  3. (c) anonymous, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://images.dev.morphbank.net/?id=590029&imgType=jpg
  4. (c) Matt Muir, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://lh5.ggpht.com/-P7Wy5ugZ8Zs/T_DQNkoSd4I/AAAAAAAAK7s/sAIfeRwSftU/P1090363.JPG
  5. (c) Matt Muir, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://lh4.ggpht.com/-wVkoAnrm0vs/T_DQOE6Lc7I/AAAAAAAAK70/-qmbCHqZ6co/P1090364.JPG
  6. (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papilio_troilus
  7. (c) Leslie Ries, some rights reserved (CC BY), http://eol.org/data_objects/19605512

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