Eastern Black Swallowtail - Papilio polyxenes |
| Size | 2½ - 3½" |
| Egg | Yellow |
| Caterpillar | Leaf green body with black bands and orange spots on each segment. |
| Host / Food | Dill, Queen Anne's Lace, Carrot, Parsley, and Celery. |
| Broods | 2 or three broods |
| Habitat | Just about any open space. |
| Range | Southern Canada along East Rockies to Atlantic to Arizona and Mexico. |
| Notes | If you want to raise your own butterflies this is an easy one to work with. Just plant some dill out in your garden and check it daily for tiny yellow eggs. Cut the dill with the eggs off and place in a critter cage. The eggs will hatch and you'll have hungry caterpillars to feed fresh dill to daily until their about 2". Place dried sticks for caterpillars to climb on. They'll then form chrysalises and hatch within a couple of weeks or next spring. It's not rocket science and I've done this a few times. The first time at 15 years old I managed to raise over 100 of these Swallowtails. |
