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Swallowtail butterflies
Posted:
July 9th, 2010, 11:24 amby A Person
I'm laying in bed looking at the lilac bush just outside my window (yes I know it's 10:00 am, but it's sunny with a refreshing cool breeze and it's going to be my last long weekend for a while). it's covered in tiger swallowtail (Papilio rutulus) butterflies, I thought I'd share with you
Re: Swallowtail butterlies
Posted:
July 9th, 2010, 12:11 pmby Liv
I haven't see a lot of butterflies around here this year... Think it's been too hot....
Re: Swallowtail butterlies
Posted:
July 9th, 2010, 12:16 pmby Sanjuro
Wow, thats beautiful. Thanks AP!
Re: Swallowtail butterflies
Posted:
July 9th, 2010, 1:09 pmby SouthernFriedInfidel
Most insects are fun to watch. Butterflies more so than most, however. Great little critters.
Re: Swallowtail butterflies
Posted:
July 9th, 2010, 11:17 pmby A Person
A small correction. I called it a Papilio rutulus but it is actually a Papilio canadensis
It used to be considered a subspecies of the Southern Tiger Swallowtail, but the Canadian Tiger Swallowtail has evolved to neutralise the poinsons in aspen and birch leaves (the food of the caterpiller)
The immature larvae look like bird droppings to discourage predation
Although it's less showy to look at, the monarch butterfly is one of my favourites for the migration it undertakes - from Canada to Mexico. Individuals don't make it all the way there and back but the flock does