Tiger swalowtail Tales

What's a tiger swallowtail?

Introduction Flita, a character in the TBF books, but a real life butterfly, was born in 2019. There have been questions as to what type of butterfly she might be. According to Spencer's family, she was an Eastern tiger swallowtail. Though Spencer hadn't raised any tiger swallowtails he had successfully raised black swallowtails to promote the butterflies in his fairy museum. That's not to say tiger swallowtails aren't an amazing and beautiful butterfly! Here are their wondrous tales as faithful companions to princess Cindy White.

Hibernation

Swallowtails go into hibernation when chrysalises. Tiger swallowtails are no stranger when it comes to hibernation in winter. When winter comes in North America, chrysalises go through a diapause stage. That means the chrysalis stops their life cycle in the colder months. They "pause" until the next until the next season comes. This may be a good protection for the chrysalis antifreezes it's whole body. During winter the day are shorter and there is less daylight, but when spring temperatures are just warm and right, the tiger swallowtails emerge as butterflies.

Conclusion

Tiger swallowtails do not migrate like monarchs but instead hibernate in winter seasons. The host plants of tiger swallowtails are trees. Therefore, it's important to plant native tree species in your local habitats. Flita for one will be honored and very appreciative to see her fellow butterflies surviving and thriving well enough to breed. Host and nectar plants are great sources that attract tiger swallowtails. Here's a list of nectar plants for your garden:

Butterfly bush

Coneflower

Phlox

Milkweed

Lilac

Ironweed

Biology

The Eastern tiger swallowtail, (papilo glaucus), is a swallowtail native to the Eastern North American continent. Trees such as spicebush, tulip tree, sugar maple tree, and more are their host plants. They start breeding in mid May, when the female lay eggs on these host plants. The eggs are laid under the leaves. This process may take about 1 week. When they hatch their life cycle begin as caterpillars. Caterpillars eat and eat their host plants for about 2 to 3 weeks until they're chrysalises, When chrysalises they usually overwinter for at least 2 1/2 weeks. Then, they become beautiful butterflies, feasting on nectar flowers like swamp milkweed, butterfly bush, and many more!

Females are iridescent blue on the bottom wings. Males are absent the iridescent blue and have only black and yellow colors. Tiger swallowtail can be solitary but they can demonstrate social behaviors. They are usually found in flutters next to ponds. Ponds provide salts and minerals for the butterflies to collect. This is known as puddling behavior.