Hi. I've seen this butterfly fluttering around my herb garden recently, probably laying eggs on my parsley and rue. It looks like it could be one of...
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Butterfly Identification #769939
Asked August 30, 2021, 5:55 PM EDT
Hi. I've seen this butterfly fluttering around my herb garden recently, probably laying eggs on my parsley and rue. It looks like it could be one of the "tailless" swallowtails like polydamas or idaeus, but my "Field Guide to the Butterflies or Eastern North America" by Alexander B. Klots hasn't been much help in narrowing it down. I would very much appreciate a name for my little visitor. Thanks!
Tony
Lexington Park, MD
St. Mary's CountyMaryland
Expert Response
Hello Tony,
This is a Red-Spotted Purple butterfly (a bit oddly named since they're more orange-spotted and blue), and they are in a different butterfly family from swallowtails. The Eastern Black Swallowtail is the one which makes use of carrot- and rue-family plants for its caterpillars. This one may have been visiting flowers in the area, or "tasting" the foliage with its feet and antennae before deciding they were not the right host plants. Or, you have indeed seen Eastern Black Swallowtails laying eggs on your herbs, but the Red-Spotted Purple butterfly uses other species for its caterpillars, including wild cherry, poplar, birch, crabapple, wild linden (basswood), and willow.
Thanks for your quick reply! I had seen Swallowtails laying eggs on my parsley and rue last month (photo attached) and the underside of the Red-Spotted Purple is not unlike the swallowtail, so I misidentified it. The dozens of swallowtail caterpillars that have been feeding on my rue for the past month formed into chrysalises which are beginning to hatch in my herb garden, I hope to be able to capture photos of at least one butterfly shortly after it emerges so I can get a series of photos as the wings develop. Wish me luck!
