Kebnat
INSECTS

Black Swallowtail

Papilio polyxenes

Insects
Native
Black Swallowtail, photo 1 of 5
Black Swallowtail, Caterpillar
Black Swallowtail, Pupa

Butterfly or moth in the family Papilionidae.

There are 2,009 observations of Black Swallowtail in Québec, mostly in Montréal, Montérégie and Outaouais, and it has been reported in 16 of the 17 regions. They peak in July and August and become rare from October to April.

Through the year

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Where to see it

  1. Montréal813
  2. Montérégie401
  3. Outaouais168
  4. Capitale-Nationale116
  5. Laurentides114
  6. Estrie110
  7. Laval50
  8. Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean49
  9. Lanaudière47
  10. Bas-Saint-Laurent40
  11. Mauricie30
  12. Chaudière-Appalaches28
  13. Centre-du-Québec23
  14. Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine10
  15. Abitibi-Témiscamingue9
  16. Côte-Nord1

What the caterpillar eats

Queen Anne's laceDaucus carota
Sweet fennelFoeniculum vulgare
TOXIC
Common rueRuta graveolens
Wild parsnipPastinaca sativa
Longstyle sweetrootOsmorhiza longistylis
DillAnethum graveolens
TOXIC
Bulblet-bearing water hemlockCicuta bulbifera
Yellow pimpernelTaenidia integerrima
Hemlock waterparsnipSium suave
Canadian honewortCryptotaenia canadensis
TOXIC
Spotted cowbaneCicuta maculata
Purplestem angelicaAngelica atropurpurea

Similar species

Spicebush SwallowtailPapilio troilus
MonarchDanaus plexippus
Eastern Giant SwallowtailHeraclides cresphontes
Red-spotted AdmiralLimenitis arthemis
Old World SwallowtailPapilio machaon
Short-tailed SwallowtailPapilio brevicauda
Mourning CloakNymphalis antiopa
Variegated FritillaryEuptoieta claudia
Small WhitePieris rapae