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What Do Black Swallowtail Butterflies Eat?

Writer Gabriel Cooper

Black swallowtail butterflies are herbivores because they feed on nectar from different plants. Their diet consists of fruits and vegetables. Adult butterflies are also known as pollinators because they play a vital role in pollination.

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Black swallowtail butterflies are found in South America and North Canada. They are common in the rocky mountains of North America. Black swallowtail butterflies can live in different habitats. They prefer to live in open areas such as parks, deserts or marshes, fields, and in temperate or tropical habitats.

The average size of a black swallowtail butterfly is about 3-4 inches with wingspan. The average weight of a black swallowtail butterfly is about 0.3 grams. These butterflies can live for 10-12 days and some can live for 35-40 days.

Flowers and plants

Black swallowtail butterflies love to eat flat-topped flowers or plants. Also, Black swallowtail butterflies like to eat flowers like gaillardia, butterfly weed, phlox, zinnias, and milkweed. Black swallowtail larva plant sources are parsley, carrot tops, and dill plants.

Black swallowtail larva also lives on turnips, fennel, and Queen Anne’s lace. Black swallowtail butterflies are attracted to plants like verbena, lantana, and sages. Black swallowtail butterflies lay their eggs on the leaves of fennel, rue, dill, and parsley. These butterflies also love bee balm flowers because of their minty citrus smell. Butterflies are also attracted to wildflowers such as ironweed because it contains a huge amount of nectar which they love. Black swallowtail butterflies also eat thistles and parsnip. Black swallowtail butterflies also come towards Joe Pye weed because they have tall blooms and butterflies are attracted towards them.

What black swallowtail butterflies don’t eat?

Black swallowtail butterflies don’t like to eat small moths and bugs like some other butterflies. Instead, Black swallowtail butterflies prefer to eat plants and their nectar rather than fruits.