Old World Swallowtail (Papilio machaeon)

OTHER NAMES: Swallowtail, Common Yellow Swallowtail
Latin Etymology: Papilio ("butterfly") machaeon (figure from Greek Myth)

Adult Old World Swallowtail (Papilio machaeon) at Writing-on-Stone, Alberta, Canada - July 2024

Featured Subspecies: Papilio machaeon bairdii*
Wingspan: 6.5-8.6cm
UK STATUS NOT EVALUATED / IUCN Red List: Least Concern

A widespread species that more or less circumnavigates the Northern Hemisphere with it's range. It is a very large butterfly, frequently one of the largest in it's range. The individual here is of the subspecies bairdii which is sometimes split off into a separate species with a range consisting of the Western United States, but it's recognition is limited. Generally, it's food plants are species such as wild carrot, wild angelica, fennel and hogweeds.

Related Species:
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Papilionidae
Genus: Papilio
SUBSPECIES: P. m. aliaska, P. m. annae, P. m. archias, P.. m. asaticus, P. m. baijangensis, P. m. bairdii, P. m. birmanicus, P. m. britannicus, P. m. brucei, P. m. centralis, P. m chinensis, P. m. gorganus, P. m. hippocrates, P. m. hudsonianus, P. m. kamtschadalus, P. m. kiyonobu, P. m. kunkalaschano, P. m. ladakensis, P. m. lapponica, P. m. machaon, P. m machaon, P. m. mauretanica, P. m. maxima, P. m. melitensis, P. m. montanus, P. m. muetingi, P. m. neochinensis, P. m. oregonius, P. m. oreinus, P. m. orientis, P. m. pikei, P. m. sachalinensis, P. m. schapiroi, P. m. septentrionalis, P. m. sikkimensis, P. m. suroia, P. m. sylvina, P. m syriacus, P. m. taliensis, P. m. ussuriensis, P. m. verityi, P. m. weidenhofferi 

 - Sighting Locations -

CANADA - Found in much of Canada
  - CHICAGO TO ALASKA ROADTRIP 2024: - Seen in Alberta

Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto