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Appalachian Tiger Swallowtail - Hodges#4183.3 (Papilio appalachiensis)
Photo#174843
Copyright © 2008
Melanie Smith
what kind of butterfly? -
Papilio appalachiensis
-
Sevier County, Tennessee, USA
March 30, 2008
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Contributed by
Melanie Smith
on 30 March, 2008 - 5:01pm
Last updated 21 December, 2011 - 2:18pm
This one has been nagging at me since it posted.
I keep comparing it back and forth, and it keeps coming up as a better fit under
P. appalacheniensis
. One other important note - this is a male, not a female.
I too would really like to seen the underside though. At the risk of being wrong (I don't think I am), I'm going to move this under in with the Appalachians, so it won't be lost in the mass of Easterns posted here.
Moved from
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
.
…
David J. Ferguson
, 21 December, 2011 - 1:27am
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Moved
Moved back to Eastern Tiger Swallowtail species page. Comments and hyperlinks leave enough footprints in case this needs to be revisited.
…
Ted Kropiewnicki
, 1 April, 2008 - 12:47pm
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Moved
Moved from
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
.
Sorry, I was revising my note when someone moved this image to the location of my first opinion. It would be best to have more experts render their opinion.
…
Ted Kropiewnicki
, 30 March, 2008 - 5:36pm
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Eastern Tiger Swallowtail or Appalachian Tiger Swallowtail
Very pale Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (
Papilio glaucus
), compare with
Photo#143732. I also found a very interesting note under
Photo#54724 about the shape of the hindwing scallops. I was originally thinking Eastern but now I am not so sure; please wait for an expert.
…
Ted Kropiewnicki
, 30 March, 2008 - 5:21pm
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Eastern
I think Eastern looks good. Of the Appalachians that I've seen, the biggest difference appears to be in the shape of the HW. The scalloping is useful, but the HW of
appalachiensis
tends to be quite a bit more angular, whereas the Easterns' are more rounded. Of particular note is the anal angle of the
appalachiensis
HW (specifically the area of the tail to the anal angle), which appears to extend further than in
glaucus
. This along with a more straight (not literally straight, but more direct path from HW apex to anal angle) outer margin gives the HW the more angular appearance. I'd love to see the ventral HW for a little more certainty, but ...
I guess size would help since
appalachiensis
is apparently quite larger than the spring brood Easterns. There seem to be some other guidelines for ID, but I don't know how consistent or reliable they are. Hopefully a definitive way to distinguish them by appearance will come about. But that's my thoughts on this one; Given the location, I don't know that we can be 100% certain, but I think you were right Ted in calling it a
P. glaucus
.
…
Jason D. Roberts
, 31 March, 2008 - 11:43am
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Eastern
Thanks JD for jumping in and sharing your expertise. When I initially encountered it, I just couldn't ignore the possibility of a rare find. Perhaps only DNA (or
Pavulaan and Wright
) could get a 100% positive ID. I do agree that the appearance of the tail and surrounding area of HW does not seem to be "squarish" enough for
appalachiensis
so
P. glaucus
it is.
…
Ted Kropiewnicki
, 1 April, 2008 - 12:39pm
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