Giant Swallowtail Butterfly

Giant Swallowtail Butterfly Coloration and Size

The Giant Swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes) is the largest of all North American butterflies although female Tiger Swallowtails approach the same size.

Both male and female have dark brown wings with yellow markings, including a large horizontal yellow strip across the wings. The underside and body are mostly yellow.

Its size is typically in the 4.0" - 6.0" range. It is similar to the Western Giant Swallowtail (Papilio rumiko), which ranges from California into Texas and south to Mexico and Central America.

Giant Swallowtail Distribution and Habitat

This swallowtail ranges throughout much of the Eastern United States, and is less common in the American Southwest and southern California. It typically stays close to wooded areas, and close to the ground. In a typical year 2-3 broods are produced.

It can often be found in woodland areas and residential gardens.

Nectar and Host Plants Used by the Giant Swallowtail

Some of the favorite nectar plants of the Giant Swallowtail are Milkweed, Lantana, Butterfly Bush, Zinnias, and many others.

Favorite host plants include citrus, lime, Hercules Club (Zanthoxylum clava-herculis), prickly ash, citrus, lime, herb rue, hoptree, and wild lime.

Giant Swallowtail Life Cycle: Stages and Times

Stage	Typical Duration
Egg stage	Generally 4 to 10 days, depending on temperature and host plant
Caterpillar (larval) stage	3 to 4 weeks
Chrysalis (pupal) stage	10 to 20 days (except for overwintering pupae)
Adult butterfly stage	6 to 14 days

Photos of Giant Swallowtail Butterflies

Giant Swallowtail Butterfly (ventral view)

Giant Swallowtail Butterfly (dorsal view)

A pair of Giant Swallowtail Butterflies feeding on Zinnias

Giant Swallowtail Butterfly, missing its right tail, feeding on purple Verbena

Giant Swallowtail Butterfly

Giant Swallowtail Butterfly, close-up

Giant Swallowtail Butterfly (ventral view) on purple Verbena

Giant Swallowtail without its left tail, resting in the shade of the woods

Giant Swallowtail enjoying nectar

Giant Swallowtail caterpillar ... the "bird poop" caterpillar

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Western Giant Swallowtail

The Western Giant Swallowtail (Papilio rumiko) ranges from California into Texas and south to Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica and Panama. It was identified in 2014 as a different species from Papilio cresphontes. It has a wing span of 4.0" - 6.25". The base color is black with a bold diagonal yellow line on the forewing, while the underside is mostly yellow,