Category Archives: Pipevine Swallowtail

Butterflies After The Rain

It’s been raining here since yesterday afternoon.  Finally at about 3 the sun came out and the rain disappeared.  That also brought out lots of Butterflies.  They’ve probably been sheltering under leaves for quite a while.  Just in five minutes I was able to count 5 Gulf Fritillary, 4 Monarchs, 1 Pipevine, 1 Polydamas, and...

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Polydamas Vs Pipevine Vs Eastern Black Swallowtail Eggs

We had a very active Pipevine Swallowtail laying eggs today.  As I was watching this Butterfly lay her eggs, I started to get confused about the differences between Polydamas, Pipevine, and Eastern Black Swallowtails.  Here are some of the differences and similarities.

Polydamas Swallowtails don’t have the “tails” like Eastern Black and Pipevine Swallowtails
Pipevine eggs are...

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Finally Some Butterflies

Once we finished walking along the creek (or river), we hiked along a trail that had lots of vines, low grasses, and in one case, a tasty roof (I’ll explain shortly).  Some of these Butterflies I have never seen in my backyard, so it was refreshing to witness something new.
Here’s a Red Banded Hairstreak.  I...

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Pipevine Or Polydamas?

We’re up to around 90 of these Pipevine or Polydamas caterpillars.  I always thought they were Pipevine but I’ve been seeing so many of the Polydamas Swallowtail’s laying eggs on the Pipevine that now I’m not so sure.  One thing is for sure, they not only are born side by side, but they apparently continue...

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Pipevine Swallowtail Caterpillars Up Close

Our “collection” (not really a collection as we always release them) of Pipevine Swallowtail caterpillars is really growing.  Right now we have somewhere close to 50-60 Pipevine Swallowtail caterpillars in several enclosures.  I knew the eggs were all laid together (not one at a time like the Monarch) but I didn’t realize that these guys...

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