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Project Noah Nature School
Papilio troilus
Identification: Butterfly where upper surface of forewing is mostly black with ivory spots along margin. Upper surface of hindwing has orange spot on costal margin and sheen of bluish (female) or bluish-green (male) scales. Underside of hindwing with pale green marginal spots. Wing Span: 3 - 4 inches (7.5 - 10 cm).
Deciduous woodlands, fields, roadsides, yards, pine barrens, wooded swamps, and parks. This one was photographed at a cultivated butterfly garden at the Silver Bluff Audubon Center near Jackson (Aiken County), SC.
Caterpillar Hosts: Spicebush (Lindera benzoin), sassafras trees (Sassafras albidum); perhaps prickly ash (Zanthoxylum americanum), tulip tree (Liriodendron tulipifera), sweetbay (Magnolia virginiana), camphor (Cinnamomum camphora), and redbay (Persea borbonia). Adult Food: Nectar from Japanese honeysuckle, jewelweed, thistles, milkweed, azalea, dogbane, lantana, mimosa, and sweet pepperbush.
Spotted on Sep 8, 2011
Submitted on Feb 22, 2015
1 Comment
My favourite butterfly.