Comments on: Giant Swallowtail Update #3

By: Kent Nall

Kent Nall — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 22:33:57 +0000

browsing the web to locate the type of butterfly or moth caterpillar I had found in my backyard on my persian lime tree,came to found out that it was a Giant Swallowtail Butterfly. Thanks looking forward to watching it transform from caterpillar to beautiful butterfly in the next month.

By: Arlene Ripley

Arlene Ripley — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 23:01:47 +0000

Leonor,
I don’t know that Giant Swallowtails specifically are cannibalistic but there are a few other North American butterflies in which the young exhibit this trait. One is the Harvester, another the Florida White. I’ve witnessed this with some moth larvae I raised and would not count it out as a possibility. Giant Swallowtail caterpillar eggs are laid singly and the caterpillars are solitary in nature. It’s possible that in a closed environment like a rearing cage the proximity of other larvae could cause cannibalistic behavior.

By: Leonor Marrero

Leonor Marrero — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 21:31:38 +0000

Do you know if Giant Swallow Tail caterpillars are cannibals? I placed two large caterpillars and two smaller caterpillars in a butterfly enclosure with plenty of food and branches; and after two days, I can only find the two large ones. There is no way that lizzards or other animals could have gotten to them.