Volume 10, Plate IV / Entomology (Insects)

Swallow-Tail Butterflies

Vinago Machaon & Papilio Podalirius

1. Swallow-Tail Butterfly. The largest of our native butterflies, the female sometimes spanning above three inches and a half, it is yellow spotted and banded with black, the under wings bearing a red eye-spot ringed with black at each hinder angle. Its smooth green caterpillar, banded with black and red, feeds on umbelliferous plants such as fennel and wild carrot, and the butterfly appears from late May through August.
2. Scarce Swallow-Tail Butterfly. Yellow as its ground colour, this insect is crossed on the upper wings by six tapering black bands, the under wings tailed and edged with blue crescents and a red anal spot. Its smooth green caterpillar feeds chiefly on sloe and other Prunus, and its claim to be truly British rests on slender evidence, a single specimen taken at Netley being almost the only authority.