Papilio thoas

Papilio thoas, the king swallowtail or Thoas swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. It is found in the southernmost United States, Mexico, Central America and South America (as far south as Argentina and Uruguay). The species is easily confused with the giant swallowtail, which it closely resembles in both larval and adult stages. The caterpillars feed on the leaves of citrus plants (Rutaceae). They have also been reported as feeding on a member of the genus Piper.[1]

Thoas swallowtail
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Insecta
Order:
Lepidoptera
Family:
Papilionidae
Genus:
Papilio
Species:
P. thoas
Binomial name
Papilio thoas
Linnaeus, 1771
Synonyms

Heraclides thoas

Adult Thoas swallowtails fly year round in the tropics, feeding on nectar of a variety of flowers, including Lantana, Stachytarpheta, and Bougainvillea among other species. The wingspan is 100–130 mm.

Subspecies

Listed alphabetically.[2]

  • P. t. autocles Rothschild & Jordan, 1906
  • P. t. brasiliensis Rothschild & Jordan, 1906
  • P. t. cinyras Ménétriés, 1857
  • P. t. nealces Rothschild & Jordan, 1906
  • P. t. oviedo Gundlach, 1866
  • P. t. thoantiades Burmeister, 1878
  • P. t. thoas Linnaeus, 1771
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References
  2. Papilio, funet.fi


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