eastern tiger swallowtail

butterfly

Also known as: Papilio glaucus

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

July 23, 2026

Quick Summary

The eastern tiger swallowtail (Papilio glaucus) is a North American species of black-and-yellow swallowtail butterfly. It is a large and widely distributed species. Male eastern tiger swallowtails are yellow with black margins and stripes on their wings. Females in the northern part of their range share similar markings. However, in the southern regions, where the pipevine swallowtail is also found, female tiger swallowtails are often predominantly black. This coloration in the south may serve as a form of mimicry, as the pipevine swallowtail is distasteful to predators. Different populations of the eastern tiger swallowtail have also evolved to specialize on different host plants for their caterpillars.12

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

2 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

Lepidoptera
Protection against danger
In North America the tiger swallowtail (P. glaucus) has mostly black females wherever it coexists with the distasteful pipevine swallowtail (Battus philenor), which is also black. However, where B. philenor does not occur, P. glaucus females tend to be all nonmimetic yellow forms like the males because, without the…
Read More
In North America the tiger swallowtail (P. glaucus) has mostly black females wherever it coexists with the distasteful pipevine swallowtail (Battus philenor), which is also black. However, where B. philenor does not occur, P. glaucus females tend to be all nonmimetic yellow forms like the males because, without the…
Read More

community ecology
Specialization in parasites
Among the tiger swallowtail group, various members have become specialized to different plant hosts. The eastern tiger swallowtail (Papilio glaucus) has a long list of recorded hosts, but it is now known that the northern and southern populations are adapted to different plant species, and these populations…
Read More
Among the tiger swallowtail group, various members have become specialized to different plant hosts. The eastern tiger swallowtail (Papilio glaucus) has a long list of recorded hosts, but it is now known that the northern and southern populations are adapted to different plant species, and these populations…
Read More

tiger swallowtail
The eastern tiger swallowtail (Papilio glaucus) is a large, widely distributed species. The yellow male has black margins and black stripes on the wings. The female is similarly marked in the north, where the black and distasteful pipevine swallowtail (Battus philenor) does not occur; in the…
Read More
The eastern tiger swallowtail (Papilio glaucus) is a large, widely distributed species. The yellow male has black margins and black stripes on the wings. The female is similarly marked in the north, where the black and distasteful pipevine swallowtail (Battus philenor) does not occur; in the…
Read More