The black swallowtail is the State Butterfly of Oklahoma. It’s a beautiful butterfly with a striking caterpillar. It is found throughout the state and is common in our flower and vegetable gardens ...
We keep finding caterpillars in our garden. I wrote about a silkworm caterpillar we raised indoors until a winged Io moth emerged in July. In August, my wife, Kathy, found another caterpillar — aka ...
Do you know the difference between a chrysalis and a cocoon? The short answer is that a chrysalis is made by a butterfly, a cocoon by a moth. Both contain a pupa, the stage between a caterpillar and a ...
Black swallowtail caterpillars eat plants like fennel, parsley and dill, absorbing toxins for protection from predators. When threatened, the caterpillar uses a forked tongue-like gland called ...
I was excited to have Monarch caterpillars, even though they were chomping away on my fennel, but then this gorgeous number emerged from the chrysalis! Seems to be a black swallowtail. I’m a little ...
East Texas is home to a wide array of fascinating wildlife, including the giant swallowtail butterfly. Known for its impressive size and striking appearance, this butterfly is a frequent visitor to ...
I love butterflies…of all kinds. And I have written several articles about this beloved insect. Most of the time, I write about the monarch butterfly, because I have raised them the last few years.
The female spicebush swallowtail butterfly was fluttering down, landing for a moment or two on a leaf on my sassafras tree and moving on to do the same thing on other leaves over and over again. It ...
The first time I saw a giant swallowtail butterfly years ago, I just happened to walk out to get the mail and saw it nectaring on lantana in my flower bed by the road. What a surprise! This huge pale ...