Zebra Swallowtail

Description:

The Zebra Swallowtail has a wingspan of 2.5 to 4.1 inches. Wings are triangular with white and black longitudinal stripes. A pair of sword-like tails extend from the hind wings. The inner margin of the hind wing has two blue spots on the corner and a red spot near the body. A red stripe runs along the middle of the ventral hind wing. E. marcellus has two seasonal forms, one occurring in the spring and the other in the summer. Spring forms are smaller, whiter, and have short, black tails with white tips. Summer forms are larger, have broader black stripes, and longer, black tails with white edges. This butterfly has the longer tails.

Habitat:

The Zebra Swallowtail can be found in the eastern United States and lower Ontario (see: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protograph...) although it is rare in the northern part of its range. It seen from late March to August in the northern portion of its range and from February to December in the southern portion. It has two broods in the north and three to four in the south. Caterpillars feed on shrubs of the pawpaw, genus Asimina. Butterflies feed on moisture from sand and nectar from flowers including blueberry, blackberry, lilac, redbud, viper's bugloss, verbena, dogbane, and common milkweed

Notes:

At this time, the name Eurytides Marcellus is recognized as valid by the Integrated Taxonomy and Information System (http://www.itis.gov/); Protographium marcellus is not recognized.