Swallowtail and Birdwing Butterflies (Papilionidae) — identification, habitat & look-alikes

Swallowtails and parnassians include familiar tailed butterflies, tropical birdwings, and pale mountain species that may have no tails at all. In the United States, this family has fewer than 30 species, but its members include some of the country's largest and most recognizable butterflies.

In this group

Black SwallowtailPapilio polyxenes

Common across much of the eastern United States to the Rockies; its caterpillars often use parsley-family garden plants.

Western Tiger SwallowtailPapilio rutulus

A bold yellow-and-black western species seen in parks, canyons, and wooded areas.

Two-tailed SwallowtailPapilio multicaudata

A large western species with two slender tails on each hindwing.

Anise SwallowtailPapilio zelicaon

A western yellow-and-black swallowtail.

Eastern Tiger SwallowtailPapilio glaucus

A familiar yellow-and-black butterfly of eastern woods, parks, and suburbs; some females are mostly dark.

Rocky Mountain ParnassianParnassius smintheus

A pale mountain member with partly translucent wings and no swallow-like tails.

Appearance

Appearance: Black-and-yellow stripes, dark iridescent wings, and pale translucent wings all occur in this family.
How to recognize it: Most are large, strong-flying butterflies. Many have one or more tail-like points on each hindwing, but parnassians and some other members do not.

Look-alikes

Whites and SulphursPieridae

Whites and sulphurs are often white, yellow, or orange and usually lack long hindwing tails. Pale parnassians can look similar, so check the wing pattern as well.

Why they get mixed upBoth families include pale butterflies that visit open flowers.

Brush-footed ButterfliesNymphalidae

Brush-footed butterflies hold their shortened front legs against the body, so they can look four-legged. Swallowtails use all six legs for walking and many are larger with hindwing tails.

Why they get mixed upBoth families contain large, colorful butterflies.

Where it lives

Typical habitats: gardens
woodland edges
meadows and mountain parks
Range: The family occurs worldwide. In the United States, different species range from Alaska and the Rocky Mountains to eastern woodlands and the Southeast.
Preferred conditions: Adults need nectar flowers, while caterpillars depend on the right .
When it’s recorded: Recorded year-round, every year · most records in Jul–Aug
341,822 observations in the US · 10 years · for referenceChoose a state

Behavior

Diet: Adults usually drink flower nectar. Caterpillars eat particular host plants that differ among species.
Activity: Flight season and number of vary with species and climate.
Overwintering: The overwintering stage varies among species.

Life cycle

Reproduction: They develop through egg, caterpillar, chrysalis, and adult stages.
Larva: Every swallowtail caterpillar has an , a hidden forked organ that can be pushed out and release a strong odor when the caterpillar is disturbed.
Caterpillar food plants: Host plants vary widely, so the caterpillar and plant need to be checked species by species.

Name and classification

Group name: “Swallowtails” is the usual everyday name for Papilionidae, and “birdwings” refers to several very large tropical members within the same family. Parnassians also belong here even though they look different from classic tailed swallowtails.
Number of species: The family has roughly 550–600 species worldwide.

Conservation

Threats: Species can be affected when their specific host plants or nectar habitats disappear.

Culture and stories

Culture and stories: The name “swallowtail” comes from hindwing tails that resemble a swallow's forked tail.

23 sources