Black Swallowtail – 5/30/20

Observer: Paul Lauenstein

Observation Date: 5/30/20

Observation Time: 2:25 p.m.

Observation Location: Moose Hill Farm (The Trustees of Reservations)

Common Name: Black Swallowtail butterfly

Scientific Name: Papilio polyxenes

Comments: The big pasture at Moose Hill Farm is a good place to find black swallowtail butterflies (and other butterfly species as well). You can sometimes find bobolinks there as well.

Black swallowtail butterflies look a lot like spicebush swallowtail butterflies. You can learn how to tell the difference between a black swallowtail and a spicebush swallowtail at: http://www.naba.org/chapters/nabambc/frames-2species.asp?sp1=Papilio-polyxenes&sp2=Papilio-troilus

There is also a good discussion of how to tell the differences among four black butterfly species at: http://louisiananaturalist.blogspot.com/2009/06/four-dark-swallowtails.html

More Information: Butterflies and Moths of North America

I took this photo the following day in the same location: