Papilio machaon - Swallowtail - Koninginnenpage - Schwalbenschwanz
The ground colour of the wings is pale yellow on both surfaces and the basal area of the forewing is black. The dark band on the hindwing has a variable amount of blue spotting and sometimes appears almost almost entirely blue. Flight from March to September in one or two broods. The Swallowtail likes flowery places of all kinds. The larval foodplants are various umbellifers including Fennel and Wild Carrot.
Once the Swallowtail was a rare species in The Netherlands. In 2002 I visited a carrot field early in the morning and found 16 resting Swallowtails. In 2003 I planted Fennel with the result that I counted more than 20 caterpillars. Thanks to a lot of carrot fields every year, the Swallowtail is no longer rare.
This link will lead to the metamorphosis of the Swallowtail.
Once the Swallowtail was a rare species in The Netherlands. In 2002 I visited a carrot field early in the morning and found 16 resting Swallowtails. In 2003 I planted Fennel with the result that I counted more than 20 caterpillars. Thanks to a lot of carrot fields every year, the Swallowtail is no longer rare.
This link will lead to the metamorphosis of the Swallowtail.
