Papilio palinurus

Papilio palinurus

Emerald swallowtail, Emerald peacock, Green-banded peacock

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Genus
SPECIES
Papilio palinurus

Papilio palinurus, the emerald swallowtail, emerald peacock, or green-banded peacock, is a butterfly of the genus Papilio of the family Papilionidae. It is native to Southeast Asia, but is regularly kept in butterfly houses around the world.

Animal name origin

The genus name Papilio comes from the Latin word papilio meaning butterfly. The species name palinurus derives from Palinurus, the name of the pilot of Aeneas's boat in Virgil's Aeneid.

Appearance

Papilio palinurus has a wingspan reaching about 8–10 centimetres (3.1–3.9 in). The dorsal sides of the wings are covered by a powder of green scales and the background vary from dark greenish to black, with broad bright emerald green metallic bands. The undersides are black with orange, white and blue spots along the edges of hindwings, that show extended tails at the end.

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The flight of these butterflies is swift and quite fast. Caterpillars feed on plants of genus Euodia belonging to the Rutaceae, commonly known as the rue or citrus family.

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Distribution

Geography

This species can be found primarily in Southeast Asia, particularly in Burma – Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Borneo, Indonesia (Simeulue, Island of Nias), Philippines (Basilan, Palawan, Balabac, Cuyo, Busuanga, and Dumaran).

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Papilio palinurus lives in Asian primary forests.

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Habits and Lifestyle

Diet and Nutrition

Population

References

1. Papilio palinurus Wikipedia article - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papilio_palinurus

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