Swallowtails are the largest

butterflies Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The ...

. They range in size from 2.5–6.4 inches (6.5–16.5 cm). There are about 600 species worldwide with about 31 species in North America. All swallowtails have tails on their

hindwing Insect wings are adult outgrowths of the insect exoskeleton that enable insects to fly. They are found on the second and third thoracic segments (the mesothorax and metathorax), and the two pairs are often referred to as the forewings and hi ...

s (except the parnassians). Their flight is slow and gliding but, when disturbed, their flight can be quite strong and rapid. They like to feed on various flowers, dung, and urine, and males like to puddle on damp ground. Most male swallowtails locate females by patrolling, and some males perch. The eggs are round and usually laid singly on different kinds of host plants. The larvae have a reddish-orange forked gland, called an osmeterium just behind the head. When frightened, the larva thrusts the gland out releasing a foul odor that will sometimes deter a predator. Many young swallowtail larvae resemble bird droppings. The

chrysalis A pupa ( la, pupa, "doll"; plural: ''pupae'') is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation between immature and mature stages. Insects that go through a pupal stage are holometabolous: they go through four distinct stages in their ...

of most species is brown or green and looks like a leaf or branch. It is held upright by a silken loop around the middle called a girdle. The swallowtails overwinter as a chrysalis.

Subfamily Parnassiinae: parnassians

* Clodius parnassian, ''

Parnassius clodius ''Parnassius clodius'' is a white butterfly which is found in the United States and Canada. It is a member of the snow Apollo genus (''Parnassius'') of the swallowtail family (Papilionidae). Its elevation range is . Description Note: The wing ...

'' * Eversmann's parnassian, ''

Parnassius eversmanni ''Parnassius eversmanni'', or Eversmann's parnassian, is a high-altitude butterfly which is found in eastern Russia, Mongolia, Japan, Alaska, and the Yukon. It is a member of the snow Apollo genus (''Parnassius'') of the swallowtail family, Papi ...

'' * Phoebus parnassian, '' Parnassius phoebus'' ** Phoebus Phoebus parnassian, '' Parnassius phoebus phoebus'' ** Rocky Mountain parnassian, '' Parnassius phoebus smintheus'' ** Sierra Nevada parnassian, '' Parnassius phoebus behri''

Subfamily Papilioninae: swallowtails

* Pipevine swallowtail, '' Battus philenor'' * Polydamas swallowtail, '' Battus polydamas'' * Cuban kite swallowtail, '' Eurytides celadon'' * Guatemalan kite-swallowtail, '' Eurytides epidaus'' * Dark kite-swallowtail, '' Eurytides philolaus'' * Red-sided swallowtail, '' Mimoides phaon'' * Ruby-spotted swallowtail, '' Papilio anchisiades'' * Bahamian swallowtail, '' Papilio andraemon'' * Queen swallowtail, '' Papilio androgeus'' * Appalachian tiger swallowtail, ''

Papilio appalachiensis ''Papilio appalachiensis'', the Appalachian tiger swallowtail, is a species of swallowtail butterfly found in eastern North America, particularly in the Appalachian Mountains. It is a hybrid of another two ''Papilio'' species, ''Papilio canadens ...

'' * Schaus's swallowtail, ''

Papilio aristodemus ''Papilio aristodemus'', the Schaus' swallowtail or island swallowtail, is a species of American butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It is found in southern Florida in the United States and throughout the West Indies. It is named in honor of W ...

'' * Broad-banded swallowtail, ''

Papilio astyalus ''Papilio astyalus'', the broad-banded swallowtail or Astyalus swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. It is found from Mexico south to Argentina. It is occasionally reported from southern Texas and rare strays can be found up to ...

'' * Short-tailed swallowtail, ''

Papilio brevicauda ''Papilio brevicauda'', the short-tailed swallowtail, is a North American butterfly in the family Papilionidae. Description The short-tailed swallowtail is very similar to the male black swallowtail (''Papilio polyxenes'') but has shorter tails ...

'' * Canadian tiger swallowtail, ''

Papilio canadensis ''Papilio canadensis'', the Canadian tiger swallowtail, is a species of butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It was once classified as a subspecies of ''Papilio glaucus''. Description Adult The wingspan of this species is 67 to 80 mm. It ...

'' * Giant swallowtail, '' Papilio cresphontes'' * Pale-spotted swallowtail, ''

Papilio erostratus ''Papilio erostratus'', the Erostratus swallowtail, is a species of Neotropical swallowtail butterfly from the genus ''Papilio'' that is found in Guatemala, Costa Rica, Belize and Mexico. Description It is very similar to '' Papilio pharnaces ...

'' * Pale swallowtail, '' Papilio eurymedon'' * Magnificent swallowtail, ''

Papilio garamas ''Papilio garamas'', commonly known as the magnificent swallowtail, is a species of Neotropical swallowtail butterfly found in Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama and Costa Rica. Description A large butterfly with a wingspan of 80 to 110 millime ...

'' * Eastern tiger swallowtail, '' Papilio glaucus'' * Indra swallowtail, ''

Papilio indra ''Papilio indra'', the Indra swallowtail, short-tailed black swallowtail, or cliff swallowtail, is a western North American butterfly in the family Papilionidae. Description The Indra swallowtail is a black swallowtail similar in coloration to ...

'' * Ozark swallowtail, ''

Papilio joanae ''Papilio joanae'', the Ozark swallowtail, is a North American butterfly species in the family Papilionidae.Jim P. Brock and Kenn Kaufman (2003). ''Butterflies of North America.'' Houghton Mifflin, New York, NY. It was once considered a synonym ...

'' Old World swallowtail, '' Papilio machaon'' ** Baird's Old World swallowtail, '' Papilio machaon bairdii'' ** Oregon swallowtail, '' Papilio machaon oregonius'' * Two-tailed swallowtail, ''

Papilio multicaudata ''Papilio multicaudata'', the two-tailed swallowtail, is a species of the family Papilionidae found in western North America from British Columbia to Central America. Description The two-tailed swallowtail is a large swallowtail of western Nort ...

'' * Ornythion swallowtail, ''

Papilio ornythion ''Papilio ornythion'', the ornythion swallowtail, is a swallowtail butterfly of the subfamily Papilioninae. It is found in Mexico and Guatemala. It is occasionally recorded from central and southern Texas and New Mexico and rarely from southern A ...

'' * Palamedes swallowtail, ''

Papilio palamedes ''Papilio palamedes'', the Palamedes swallowtail or laurel swallowtail, is a North American butterfly in the family Papilionidae. Description The upperside of the wings is blackish brown with both wings having a yellow postmedian band and a yell ...

'' * Pink-spotted swallowtail, '' Papilio pharnaces'' * Three-tailed swallowtail, '' Papilio pilummus'' * Black swallowtail, ''

Papilio polyxenes ''Papilio polyxenes'', the (eastern) black swallowtail, American swallowtail or parsnip swallowtail, is a butterfly found throughout much of North America. It is the state butterfly of Oklahoma and New Jersey. An extremely similar-appearing spec ...

'' ** Desert black swallowtail, '' Papilio polyxenes coloro'' * Western tiger swallowtail, '' Papilio rutulus'' * Thoas swallowtail, '' Papilio thoas'' * Band-gapped swallowtail, ''

Papilio torquatus ''Papilio torquatus'', the torquatus swallowtail, is a swallowtail butterfly in the subfamily Papilioninae. It is found from northern Argentina to Mexico. The wingspan is . Adults strongly resemble '' Papilio garleppi''. The larvae feed on the ...

'' * Spicebush swallowtail, '' Papilio troilus'' * Victorine swallowtail, '' Papilio victorinus'' * Chinese swallowtail, '' Papilio xuthus'' * Anise swallowtail, ''

Papilio zelicaon ''Papilio zelicaon'', the anise swallowtail, is a common swallowtail butterfly of western North America. Both the upper and lower sides of its wings are black, but the upper wing has a broad yellow stripe across it, giving the butterfly an overal ...

'' * White-dotted cattleheart, ''

Parides alopius ''Parides alopius'', the white-dotted cattleheart, is an endemic Mexican butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It has also strayed once into the United States in southeastern Arizona.Jim P. Brock and Kenn Kaufman (2003). ''Butterflies of North ...

'' * Variable cattleheart, ''

Parides erithalion ''Parides erithalion'', the variable cattleheart, is a North and South American butterfly in the family Papilionidae. The species was first described by Jean Baptiste Boisduval in 1836.Glassberg, Jeffrey (2007). ''A Swift Guide to the Butterfli ...

'' * Montezuma's cattleheart, ''

Parides montezuma ''Parides montezuma'', the Montezuma's cattleheart, is a butterfly in the family Papilionidae. It is native to the Americas. Description The upperside of the wings is black, without a band and with one row of red crescents along the hindwing ma ...

'' * Zebra swallowtail, ''

Protographium marcellus ''Eurytides marcellus'', the zebra swallowtail, (formerly listed under genera ''Protographium'', ''Iphiclides'', '' Graphium'' and ''Papilio'' by some authorities) is a swallowtail butterfly native to the eastern United States and south-eastern ...

References

* Jim P. Brock, Kenn Kaufman (2003). ''Butterflies of North America.'' Boston: Houghton Mifflin. {{ISBN, 0-618-15312-8. * *North America Pap