(Linnaeus, 1758)
Scarce Swallowtail
Description:
This large, conspicuous butterfly with its elegant gliding flight, is very impressive. It occurs in warm, dry places with scrub and rough vegetation. The males of the Scarce Swallowtail congregate on hilltops, dancing in the air and waiting for the females, a type of behaviour known as "hill-topping". They visit thistles and other flowers rich in nectar.
The eggs are laid on the leaves of small bushes or trees of Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) and other types of Prunus. The caterpillars feed on the leaves. When fully-grown, they pupate, the chrysalis suspended in a silken girdle in the food plant.
Depending on its position in the range and on the altitude, the Scarce Swallowtail has one to three generations a year.
Habitat:
Orchards - tree plantations
Dry calcareous grasslands
Deciduous forests
Similar species:
Papilio hospiton
Papilio alexanor