Papilio machaon

Resident in North America (Scott 1986). Habitats are TUNDRA, WOODS, PRAIRIE. Host plants are largely restricted to a few species mostly in one family, COMPOSITAE. Hosts are usually herbaceous. Eggs are laid on the host plant singly. Individuals overwinter as pupae. There are a variable number of flights based on latitude with the approximate flight time JUN1-JUL15 in the northern part of the range and MAY1-SEP30 in the southern part of their range (Scott 1986).

This species of butterfly, Papilio machaon, is found primarily in Europe and Asia, but populations are becoming more scarce and confined. Other regions where Papilio machaon can be found include Canada, Alaska, and California.

Biogeographic Regions: nearctic (Native ); palearctic (Native )

Other Geographic Terms: holarctic

occurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations

Canada

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

United States

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

Global Range: (>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)) In North America, Alaska and Canada south to southern Ontario. Absent from northeast arctic Canada. Also present in Eurasia; holarctic.

Papilio machaon has a striking coloration of black on top of a yellow base color. There are blue and red spots on the hind wings. A mutation or variation on swallowtails' natural color is the occasional butterfly that displays melanism, a black coloration on the wings, rather than yellow. The are fairly large butterflies compared to most others. Old World swallowtails have two overlapping wings, which create a wing span anywhere from 5.5 - 8 cm in length. Some females even have a fore-wing span that reaches beyond 8.8 cm.

Range wingspan: 5.5 to 8.8 cm.

Other Physical Features: ectothermic ; heterothermic ; bilateral symmetry ; polymorphic

Old World swallowtails live in varying habitats that span the world. In a variety of elevations, they find homes in grasslands, hilltops, tundras, forests, mountains, and other temperate areas. Some are even found in subarctic and Arctic areas of the globe.

Habitat Regions: temperate

Terrestrial Biomes: tundra ; savanna or grassland ; forest ; mountains ; icecap

Comments: In North America, low arctic and alpine tundra, boreal forest and woodland, wooded and shrubby flats, northern prairies, arid canyons, meadows, shores, exposed hilltops among others. A great variety of boreal and montane habitats for the species overall but some subspecies more restricted and some extending into hotter habitats even desert canyons. Also in Eurasia the species occupies a much greater range of habitats and climatic zone from subarctic to Mediterranean.

Non-Migrant: No. All populations of this species make significant seasonal migrations.

Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make local extended movements (generally less than 200 km) at particular times of the year (e.g., to breeding or wintering grounds, to hibernation sites).

Locally Migrant: No. No populations of this species make annual migrations of over 200 km.

In its caterpillar stage, Papilio machaon derives nourishment from its birth place on the milk parsley grown in parts of Europe, or among other various plants, preferrably those of the parsley family. These young caterpillars tend to eat the leaves of their host plant. Once these caterpillars have grown some, they prefer to eat the flowers on these plants. Adult butterflies feed on the nectar of these flowers.

Plant Foods: leaves; nectar; flowers

Primary Diet: herbivore (Folivore , Nectarivore )

Animal / parasitoid / endoparasitoid
larva of Peleteria rubescens is endoparasitoid of larva of Papilio machaon

Like all butterflies, Old World swallowtails can be effective pollinators.

Ecosystem Impact: pollinates

Note: For many non-migratory species, occurrences are roughly equivalent to populations.

Estimated Number of Occurrences: 81 to >300

10,000 to >1,000,000 individuals

Adults feed mainly from nectar and mud. Males both perch and patrol for females (Scott, 1986).

Like all butterflies, Old World swallowtails undergo metamorphosis. In 8 to 10 days the eggs hatch into the larvae. The larval stage lasts for about 6 - 7 weeks, after which the pupal stage begins. Pupation usually occurs in August. This stage is the longest (and most variable) of the butterfly's life cycle lasting anywhere between 2 to 24 weeks. The adult stage is very short, often lasting only a few weeks. After breeding, the butterfly will die and the cycle begins again.

Development - Life Cycle: metamorphosis

Adult swallowtails display hilltopping behavior and use this to identify potential mates. Following mating, females lay their spherically-shaped yellow eggs singly on the milk parsley. The breeding season is sometime in May through July.

Breeding season: May - July

Key Reproductive Features: semelparous ; seasonal breeding ; gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual ; fertilization (Internal ); oviparous

Beyond developing and laying eggs, there is no parental care in this species.

Parental Investment: pre-fertilization (Provisioning)

Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLDS) Stats
Public Records: 32
Specimens with Barcodes: 147
Species With Barcodes: 1

The following is a representative barcode sequence, the centroid of all available sequences for this species.

There are 28 barcode sequences available from BOLD and GenBank.  Below is a sequence of the barcode region Cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COI or COX1) from a member of the species.  See the BOLD taxonomy browser for more complete information about this specimen and other sequences.

Download FASTA File

Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLDS) Stats
Public Records: 0
Specimens with Barcodes: 2
Species With Barcodes: 1

There are no special concerns listed for Old World swallowtails, although it is recognized as rare. Efforts have been made to re-introduce it in some areas of England where it is no longer found. This was unsuccessful but could later be retried. According to the the Nature Conservancy Global Rank, it is a G5, secure globally although rare within its habitats.

US Federal List: no special status

CITES: no special status

State of Michigan List: no special status

Canada

Rounded National Status Rank: N5 - Secure

United States

Rounded National Status Rank: N5 - Secure

Rounded Global Status Rank: G5 - Secure

Reasons: Widespread swallowtail of Eurasia and common in parts of Canada as well.

Degree of Threat: D : Unthreatened throughout its range, communities may be threatened in minor portions of the range or degree of variation falls within natural variation

Biological Research Needs: None.

Global Protection: Few to several (1-12) occurrences appropriately protected and managed

Needs: None.

There are no known or serious adverse affects to humans noted at this time.

This species is very diverse, but has become less and less widespread. Aesthetically, they are unique and are still very rare in collections worldwide.

Positive Impacts: ecotourism