Pink-spotted Swallowtail (Papilio pharnaces Doubleday)
Wing span: 3 5/16 - 3 3/4 inches (8.4 - 9.5 cm)
Identification: Wings black; some specimens without tails. Upper surface of hindwing with submarginal and postmedian bands of small pink spots.
Life history: None reported.
Flight: February-October in Mexico, April in south Texas.
Caterpillar hosts: Plants in citrus (Rutaceae) family.
Adult food: Flower nectar.
Habitat: Edges of woods at low-middle elevations.
Range: Central and southern Mexico. One stray reported from lower Rio Grande Valley, Texas.
Conservation: Not required for tropical stray.
Management needs: None noted.
The Nature Conservancy Global Rank: G3 - Very rare or local throughout its range or found locally in a restricted range (21 to 100 occurrences). (Threatened throughout its range).
References:
Beutelspacher, C. R. 1984. Mariposas de Mexico, Fasciculo I. La Prensa Medica Mexicana, S. A. 171 pages, 20 color plates. Opler, P. A. and V. Malikul. 1992. A field guide to eastern butterflies. Peterson field guide #4. Houghton-Mifflin Co., Boston. 396 pages, 48 color plates.
Author: Jane M. Struttmann
State and Regional References:
Neck, R.W. 1996. A Field Guide to Butterflies of Texas. Gulf Publishing Co., Houston, Texas. Opler, Paul A. 1999. Peterson Field Guide to Western Butterflies, revised edition. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston, Mass. Stanford, R.E. and P.A. Opler. 1993. Atlas of Western USA Butterflies. Privately published, Denver, Colo. Tilden, J.W. and A.C. Smith. 1986. A Field Guide to Western Butterflies. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston, Mass. Tveten, J. and Tveten, G. 1996. Butterflies of Houston & Southeast Texas. Univ. of Texas Press, Austin, TX. 292 pp.