Zebra Swallowtail (Eurytides marcellus)
Caterpillar hosts: Shrubs of the genus Asimina (pawpaw) in the Annonaceae family. Young plants are preferred.
Adult food: Moisture from sand and nectar from flowers including blueberry, blackberry, lilac, redbud, verbena, dogbane, and common milkweed.
Habitat: Breeds in moist low woodlands near swamps and rivers. Adults fly to nectar plants in open fields and brushy areas.
Range: Most abundant in the central/eastern part of the U. S.
Source: Butterflies and Moths of NA
Caterpillar hosts: Shrubs of the genus Asimina (pawpaw) in the Annonaceae family. Young plants are preferred.
Adult food: Moisture from sand and nectar from flowers including blueberry, blackberry, lilac, redbud, verbena, dogbane, and common milkweed.
Habitat: Breeds in moist low woodlands near swamps and rivers. Adults fly to nectar plants in open fields and brushy areas.
Range: Most abundant in the central/eastern part of the U. S.
Source: Butterflies and Moths of NA
7 comments:
Wow. This is a nice Zebra Swallowtail, Marvin. I had one that had really long tails on it a couple of years ago. None this past summer. They are so nice to see.
OK, so what makes a swallowtail a swallowtail? I wonder if they come up here. I hope so.
Beautiful butterflies and the violet in your most recent posts! It's so nice to see summery things.
Thanks to all for your comments.
Andrée: According to Arkansas Butterflies and Moths, the swallowtail family of butterflies is named for the elongated "tails" on the insect's hindwings, resembling the long tails of barn swallows.
Butterflies and Moths of NA says they are rare in the norther part of their range. I'm afraid Vermont qualifies as "northern" so you may not see any. :-(
What a beauty. I want some paw paws for our garden this year. WE have blackberries. I hope to lure them here.
Thanks for sharing this. Here in Ft. Worth we are just a little too far west to regularly see this. I will have to look and see if Tarrant county has any records.
thanks, Troy
Dear Marvin,
I saw a Zebra on afternoon last summer in my backyard. I have planted a couple of PAw-paws and plan on planting more this spring.
Wow they are beautiful!
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