Swallowtail (<i>Papilio machaon</i>)

The Swallowtail is a species of flower-rich meadows and small-scale farmland. The males and females meet at elevated places or above high trees, showing a type of behaviour known as “hill- topping”. The butterfly of the Swallowtail needs a lot of nectar. Eggs are laid on various umbellifers, including Wild Carrot (Daucus carota). The fully-grown larvae are very conspicuous, bright green with black stripes and orange spots. Caterpillars from autumn broods leave the foodplant to pupate on the ground and hibernation takes place as a pupa. The caterpillars of the summer broods pupate low down on the larval foodplant. Depending on geographic setting, the Swallowtail produces one to three generations a year.

Family	Papilionidae
Subfamily	Papilioninae
Genus	Papilio
Species	machaon
Authority	Linnaeus, 1758
English Name	Swallowtail

European Red List 2010	Least Concern (LC)
EU 27 Red List 2010	Least Concern (LC)
European Red List 2025	Least Concern (LC)
EU 27 Red List 2025	Least Concern (LC)
Habitats Directive
Bern Convention
CITES

#	Order	Family	Genus	Species	Vernacular Name
1	Apiales	Apiaceae	Aegopodium	podagraria	Ground-elder
2	Apiales	Apiaceae	Ammi	majus	Bullwort
3	Apiales	Apiaceae	Anethum	graveolens	Dill
4	Apiales	Apiaceae	Angelica	archangelica	Garden Angelica
5	Apiales	Apiaceae	Angelica	archangelica ssp. archangelica
6	Apiales	Apiaceae	Angelica	archangelica ssp. litoralis
7	Apiales	Apiaceae	Angelica	pyrenaea
8	Apiales	Apiaceae	Angelica	sylvestris	Wild Angelica
9	Apiales	Apiaceae	Apium	graveolens	Wild Celery
10	Apiales	Apiaceae	Berula	erecta	Lesser Water-parsnip
11	Apiales	Apiaceae	Bupleurum	falcatum	Sickle-leaved Hare's-ear
12	Apiales	Apiaceae	Carum	carvi	Caraway
13	Apiales	Apiaceae	Carum	heldreichii
14	Apiales	Apiaceae	Carum	meoides
15	Apiales	Apiaceae	Cicuta		Cowbane
16	Apiales	Apiaceae	Cicuta	virosa	Cowbane
17	Apiales	Apiaceae	Conium	maculatum	Hemlock
18	Apiales	Apiaceae	Coriandrum	sativum	Coriander
19	Apiales	Apiaceae	Crithmum	maritimum	Rock Samphire
20	Apiales	Apiaceae	Daucus	carota	Wild Carrot (see ssp.)
21	Apiales	Apiaceae	Daucus	carota ssp. carota
22	Apiales	Apiaceae	Daucus	carota ssp. maximus
23	Apiales	Apiaceae	Daucus	carota ssp. sativus
24	Apiales	Apiaceae	Eryngium	campestre	Field Eryngo
25	Apiales	Apiaceae	Falcaria	vulgaris	Longleaf
26	Apiales	Apiaceae	Ferula	communis	Giant Fennel
27	Apiales	Apiaceae	Foeniculum	vulgare	Fennel
28	Apiales	Apiaceae	Glaucosciadium	cordifolium
29	Apiales	Apiaceae	Heracleum	mantegazzianum	Giant Hogweed
30	Apiales	Apiaceae	Heracleum	sphondylium	Hogweed
31	Apiales	Apiaceae	Laserpitium	gallicum
32	Apiales	Apiaceae	Laserpitium	halleri
33	Apiales	Apiaceae	Laserpitium	latifolium
34	Apiales	Apiaceae	Levisticum	officinale	Lovage
35	Apiales	Apiaceae	Ligusticum	ferulaceum
36	Apiales	Apiaceae	Ligusticum	scothicum
37	Apiales	Apiaceae	Meum	athamanticum	Spignel
38	Apiales	Apiaceae	Myrrhis	odorata	Sweet Cicely
39	Apiales	Apiaceae	Opopanax	hispidus
40	Apiales	Apiaceae	Orlaya	grandiflora
41	Apiales	Apiaceae	Pastinaca	sativa	Parsnip (see ssp.)
42	Apiales	Apiaceae	Petroselinum	crispum	Garden Parsley
43	Apiales	Apiaceae	Peucedanum	cervaria
44	Apiales	Apiaceae	Peucedanum	lancifolium
45	Apiales	Apiaceae	Peucedanum	officinale	Hog's Fennel
46	Apiales	Apiaceae	Peucedanum	officinale ssp. paniculatum
47	Apiales	Apiaceae	Peucedanum	oreoselinum
48	Apiales	Apiaceae	Peucedanum	ostruthium
49	Apiales	Apiaceae	Peucedanum	palustre
50	Apiales	Apiaceae	Pimpinella		Burnet-saxifrages
51	Apiales	Apiaceae	Pimpinella	anisum
52	Apiales	Apiaceae	Pimpinella	major	Greater Burnet-saxifrage
53	Apiales	Apiaceae	Pimpinella	peregrina	Slender Burnet-saxifrage
54	Apiales	Apiaceae	Pimpinella	saxifraga	Burnet-saxifrage
55	Apiales	Apiaceae	Ptychotis	saxifraga
56	Apiales	Apiaceae	Ridolfia	segetum	False Fennel
57	Apiales	Apiaceae	Scaligeria	napiformis
58	Apiales	Apiaceae	Selinum	carvifolia	Cambridge Milk-parsley
59	Apiales	Apiaceae	Seseli	libanotis	Moon Carrot
60	Apiales	Apiaceae	Seseli	montanum
61	Apiales	Apiaceae	Seseli	rigidum
62	Apiales	Apiaceae	Silaum	silaus	Pepper-saxifrage
63	Apiales	Apiaceae	Siler	montanum
64	Apiales	Apiaceae	Sison	amomum	Stone Parsley
65	Apiales	Apiaceae	Sium	latifolium	Greater Water-parsnip
66	Apiales	Apiaceae	Trinia	glauca	Honewort
67	Asterales	Asteraceae	Achillea	millefolium	Yarrow
68	Sapindales	Rutaceae	Citrus	x limon
69	Sapindales	Rutaceae	Dictamnus	albus
70	Sapindales	Rutaceae	Ruta	angustifolia
71	Sapindales	Rutaceae	Ruta	chalepensis
72	Sapindales	Rutaceae	Ruta	graveolens	Rue
73	Sapindales	Rutaceae	Ruta	montana

Swallowtail (Papilio machaon)

Description

Distribution

Larval Foodplants