A large yellow butterfly with black markings, and a medium length tail on the hindwing. There is a dark patch in the basal area of the wing. The antennae are black and hooked. Male and female are very similar. The wing shape is quite distinctive though could be confused with P. alexanor, which has a straight, white-tipped antennal club, and the black markings are stripes, without a black basal patch. The submarginal black stripe is narrower and without scalloping.
Found in a wide range of open habitats, e.g. gardens, grasslands, maquis and riverine environments.
Dill Anethum graveolens, Chervil Anthriscus cerefolium - not on Corfu, Coriander Coriandrum sativum, Fennel Foeniculum vulgare, Kumquat Citrus japonica (introduced) Lemon Citrus x limon (introduced) Grapefruit Citrus x paradisi (introduced) Orange Citrus x sinensis (introduced) Lime Citrus x aurantiifolia (introduced). Most commonly encountered on Fennel in Corfu.
Most frequently encountered nectaring, where the butterfly supports its weight with continuous flight above the flower. Usually seen as singletons, it is particularily easy to photograph/video on blooms of the Aromatic Inula Dittrichia vicosa, in the autumn.
*The information provided in the tables below is based on verified sightings of the Swallowtail submitted via this website since 1st January 2021.
Year | First | Last/latest | # Days |
---|---|---|---|
2022 | 20/03/2022 | 17/05/2022 | 58 days |
2021 | 07/03/2021 | 25/10/2021 | 232 days |
Year | Number of observations |
---|---|
2022 | 21 |
2021 | 94 |
Grand Total | 115 |
Distribution map for the Swallowtail based on the data submitted online via this website will be available below soon.
The chart below shows Swallowtail flight data by month for 2022 submitted online since 1st January 2022 to 17th May 2022.
The chart below shows Swallowtail flight data by month based on all data submitted online since 1st January 2019 to 17th May 2022.
For a list of references, please see our bibliography page.