Giant Swallowtail pupa - Papilio cresphontes - BugGuide.Net

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Copyright © 2004 Hannah Nendick-Mason

Giant Swallowtail pupa - Papilio cresphontes

Gainesville, Florida, USA
August 12, 2004

I've recently become interested in raising caterpillars indoors that I come across in my yard. This one I collected as an egg (on citrus), which seems to be best for avoiding parasites (and thus disappointing deaths). Like other swallowtails it is cradled in a girdle of silk. This species is adept at camouflage - it manages not only to blend in with the twig, but even appears to be covered with blue-green lichen.

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Giant Swallowtail - Papilio cresphontes

Giant Swallowtail pupa - Papilio cresphontes

Contributed by Hannah Nendick-Mason on 18 August, 2004 - 8:31pm
Last updated 3 August, 2006 - 3:41pm

Double-Wow!

That is really, really cool. That pupa looks amazingly like bark.

Patrick Coin
Durham, North Carolina

… Cotinis, 18 August, 2004 - 11:33pm

Unbelievable

I had to stare awhile.

I brought home a few eggs in the past few weeks and managed to get some pics right before hatching. Its really interesting to watch how radically they change as they mature. I believe they both will become hickory horned devils, and I've sleeved them in my backyard on a sweetgum (same host I found them on).

I think its great having pics of the various life stages. I'm looking forward to posting the various forms at some point.

… Troy Bartlett, 18 August, 2004 - 8:36pm

I totally agree -

for instance, if I could only get an ID on the bug nymph I found freshly hatched in my yard a while ago (see below), I have some "eggs with eyes" pictures that I would love to share. Most guides only show the adult and I think BugGuide has a distinct advantage there. It's not as though you're more likely to come across an adult than an immature stage, in fact quite the opposite, though admittedly adults are larger (and easier to ID - but we can work on that).

… Hannah Nendick-Mason, 18 August, 2004 - 8:43pm

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