An Easy Butterfly Gardener’s Guide to Albuquerque, NM Swallowtails

Albuquerque, New Mexico is located within Bernalillo County in central New Mexico. This blog post covers the entire county as the Albuquerque area.

The Albuquerque, NM area is located in three zones depending on elevation. The city of Albuquerque is in zone 7, but to the south is zone 8. The northeastern part of the county has a high point that is within zone 6. When selecting plants you will want to get those that can handle temperatures as cold as 0F to be sure they will survive.

Pipevine Swallowtail (Battus philenor)

The pipevine swallowtail flies throughout the United States, except for the Pacific Northwest. It has orange-brown eggs that are laid on the host plant. The black to brown to red caterpillar with orange markings comes out in the spring. They then overwinter as a pupa (Monroe and Wright 2017).

In the spring and into the summer the adult butterflies start to fly. They have a wingspan of 2.5 inches (6.4 cm) to 5 inches (12.7 cm) inches and are black colored with white markings.

Plants that Host the Pipevine Swallowtail

The pipevine swallowtail is generally hosted by members of the birthwort family (Aristolochiaceae). In the Albuquerque area there are no species present in this family. However, there is a breeding population in southwestern New Mexico, which feeds on Watson’s pipevine (Aristolochia watsonii). This species is able to fly long distances (Pajarito Environmental Education Center) can be nourished with nectar species in the Albuquerque area.

Giant Swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes)

The giant swallowtail flies throughout the United States and southeast Canada, except for the northwest. Beyond North America it ranges into Central America and the Caribbean Islands. It is the largest butterfly in North America (Wikipedia – Papilio cresphontes).

Giant swallowtail has brownish-orange eggs that are laid on the host plants. The caterpillars have five stages or instars before pupating, which takes about two weeks. The chrysalis resembles dead wood (West and Hazel 1996).

The adult butterflies have a wingspans ranging from about 5.5 inches (14 cm) to 7.5 inches (19 cm) and are black and yellow colored.

Plants that Host the Giant Swallowtail

The giant swallowtail is hosted by members of the Rutaceae, of which there is one species in the Albuquerque area, common hoptree (Ptelea trifoliata).

Pale Swallowtail (Papilio eurymedon)

The pale swallowtail flies in the western United States. The green eggs are laid on the leaves of the host plant. The caterpillars have two color variations, first green and then the last stage is brown. The brown chrysalis looks like bark to camouflage it (Wikipedia – Papilio eurymedon).

The black and cream colored adults have a wingspan of 3.5 inches (8.9 cm) to 4.5 inches (11.4 cm).

Plants that Host the Pale Swallowtail

The pale swallowtail uses members of the Buckthorn Family (Rhamnaceae) and the Rose Family (Rosaceae) as host plants. Some plants in the Albuquerque area that host this species include:

• Fendler’s Buckbrush (Ceanothus fendleri): a shrub
• Members of the Geum (Avens) genus: herbaceous plants
• Members of the Potentilla (Cinquefoil) genus: herbaceous plants
• Members of the Prunus (Cherry) genus: herbaceous plants
• Members of the Rubus (Raspberries) genus: herbaceous plants

Old World Swallowtail (Papilio machaon)

The old world swallowtail flies in Europe and North America. In North America it flies in the midwest and western United States, incuding Alaska and western Canada.

The orange eggs are laid on the host plants. The caterpillar is black and white striped with orange spots.

The adult butterflies have wingspans ranging from about 2.5 inches (6.3 cm) to 3.5 inches (8.9 cm) and are black and yellow colored with blue markings on the hindquarters and two red eyespots. Sometimes the black coloring is washed out and more yellowish.

Plants that Host the Old World Swallowtail

The old world swallowtail uses members of the carrot family (Apiaceae) as host plants. Some species in the Albuquerque area that host this swallowtail include:

• Spotted Water Hemlock (Cicuta maculata): a herbaceous plant
• Alpine Spring-Parsley (Cymopterus lemmonii): a herbaceous plant
• American Cow-Parsnip (Heracleum maximum): a herbaceous plant
• Porter’s Wild Lovage (Ligusticum porteri): a herbaceous plant
• Constance’s Venus-Parsley (Vesper constancei): a herbaceous plant

Two-tailed Swallowtail (Papilio multicaudata)

The two-tailed swallowtail flies in the western United States and Central America. The yellowish eggs are laid singly on the host plants. The caterpillar starts out black and white and then becomes orange to green. The brownish chrysalis is camouflaged.

The adults have a wingspan of 3 inches (7.6 cm) to 6.5 inches (16.5 cm), are yellow and black colored and is similar to the tiger swallowtails. They differ from the others with thinner stripes and they have two tails on the hindwing.

Plants that Host the Two-tailed Swallowtail

The two-tailed swallowtail utilizes members of the Rue Family (Rutaceae) and the Rose Family (Rosaceae). Some species in the Albuquerque area include:

• Common Hoptree (Ptelea trifoliata): a shrub to tree
• Members of the Geum (Avens) genus: herbaceous plants
• Members of the Potentilla (Cinquefoil) genus: herbaceous plants
• Members of the Prunus (Cherry) genus: herbaceous plants
• Members of the Rubus (Raspberries) genus: herbaceous plants

Black Swallowtail (Papilio polyxenes)

The black swallowtail flies in most of the United States, except for the Northwest. The yellow eggs are laid on the host plants and take about a week to hatch. The caterpillars are at first black colored but later have green, black, and yellow coloring and last from a week to a month. The butterflies then survive the winter as a chrysalis.

The adults have a wingspan of 2.5 (7cm) to 3.5 inches (8.5cm) and are black colored with yellow spots along the wings and a red eyepsot near the tail on the top. The underside has orange spots.

Plants that Host the Black Swallowtail

The black swallowtail is a generalist and uses members of the carrot family (Apiaceae) as host plants. Some examples of carrot family members in Albuquerque include:

• Cut-leaf Water-Parsnip (Berula erecta): a herbaceous plant
• Spotted Water Hemlock (Cicuta maculata): a herbaceous plant
• Alpine Spring-Parsley (Cymopterus lemmonii): a herbaceous plant
• American Cow-Parsnip (Heracleum maximum): a herbaceous plant
• Porter’s Wild Lovage (Ligusticum porteri): a herbaceous plant
• Constance’s Venus-Parsley (Vesper constancei): a herbaceous plant

Western Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio rutulus)

The western tiger swallowtail flies in the western United States and northern Mexico. The green eggs are laid on the host plants. The caterpillar when it first comes out resembles a bird dropping but then becomes orange and then green with age. The chrysalis looks like wood to camouflage it.

The adults have a wingspan of 3 inches (7.6 cm) to 4 inches (10.1 cm) and are yellow with black stripes. Generally there are one to two broods a year.

Plants that Host the Western Tiger Swallowtail

The western tiger swallowtail, like its eastern counterpart, is a generalist and feeds on numerous shrubs and trees. Some species in the Albuquerque area include:

• Speckled Alder (Alnus incana): a shrub to tree
• Water Birch (Betula occidentalis): a shrub to tree
• Velvet Ash (Fraxinus velutina): a tree
• Cultivated Apple (Malus pumila): an introduced tree
• Black Cherry (Prunus serotina): a tree
• Narrow-leaf Cottonwood (Populus angustifolia): a tree
• Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides): a tree
• Arroyo Willow (Salix lasiolepis): a shrub to tree

Anise Swallowtail (Papilio zelicaon)

The anise swallowtail flies in the western United States. The greenish eggs are laid on the leaves of spicebush. The caterpillars are dark brown in the first two instars but become more green ending with a green, black, and yellow color. The chrysalis has the appearance of a branch (Wikipedia – Papilio zelicaon) of the host plant and is light green to brown (butterfly identification).

The adults have a wingspan of 2 inches (5 cm) to 3 inches (7.6 cm) and are black and yellow with blue on the hindquarters and a red eyespot on the bottom middle. This species looks like the eastern tiger swallowtail without the vertical stripes and is smaller (butterfly identification).

Plants that Host the Anise Swallowtail

The anise swallowtail utilizes members of the carrot family (Apiaceae) as host plants. Some examples in the Albuquerque area incude:

• Cut-leaf Water-Parsnip (Berula erecta): a herbaceous plant
• Spotted Water Hemlock (Cicuta maculata): a herbaceous plant
• Alpine Spring-Parsley (Cymopterus lemmonii): a herbaceous plant
• American Cow-Parsnip (Heracleum maximum): a herbaceous plant
• Porter’s Wild Lovage (Ligusticum porteri): a herbaceous plant
• Constance’s Venus-Parsley (Vesper constancei): a herbaceous plant

While the swallowtails need certain species of plants to use as hosts, the adults also need nectar plants to visit in order to get nourishment. Nectar plants can also help other insects such as bees and no garden is complete without nectar plants. Some common nectar plants that can be grown in the Albuquerque, NM area include:

• Goldenrods (Solidago spp.): a genus of herbaceous plants
• Milkweeds (Asclepias spp.) — Also benefit the Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus): a genus of herbaceous plants
• Asters (Symphyotrichum spp.): a genus of herbaceous plants
• Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta): a herbaceous plant
• Green-head Coneflower (Rudbeckia laciniata): a herbaceous plant
• Ragworts (Senecio spp.): a genus of herbaceous plants
• Hedgeflower (Lantana camara): a herbaceous plant that attracts butterflies