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Tag Archives: Giant swallowtail caterpillar
Self-defense
The giant swallowtail caterpillar has quite the defense when bothered. They have an osmeterium, which is a Y-shaped eversible gland, that is used to wipe against small predators, such as ants and spiders. When the caterpillar is in its fourth and fifth instars it contains a highly noxious, pungent mixture of chemicals, which has a very distinctive smell.
This giant is in our butterfly house. When I was moving around plants, it brushed the caterpillar sending him into defense mode. And, yes, there was a pungent smell that filled the space.
The giant
Our giant swallowtail caterpillar looks as if it is in the final larval instar, number five. It is said that the head of the caterpillar looks like a snake head.
Once it is ready to pupate, it will do so on small twigs, or find a place that has a vertical structure, as it creates its chrysalis at a 45 degree angle. It will be interesting to see where it makes its chrysalis in the butterfly house.
I first brought it in to our butterfly house on Aug. 29.
Doubled in size
The giant swallowtail that became a resident in our butterfly house on Aug. 29 has better than doubled in size. The caterpillar resembles that of bird poop, which helps when they are smaller as they sit on the top of surfaces in plain view. The caterpillar goes through five instars, with feeding typically taking place during night hours.
Special find
There is definitely a sense of thrill when you find a caterpillar that is not as abundant in the garden.
This morning a scan of our citrus tree revealed a very small giant swallowtail caterpillar hanging out on a leaf. When the caterpillar is young, they are predominately black, or brown, with a white saddle. When they become older, the saddle becomes white, or cream, while the remaining part of the caterpillar is dark brown.
Since it is probably in the first instar, I cut off the branch it was on and put it in a vase of water. I used saran wrap to stuff in the hole, so the caterpillar is safe from falling into the water. I sure hope this caterpillar makes it to the chrysalis stage and beyond. The giant swallowtail is absolutely stunning.
As always here’s a link to my page about giant swallowtails for more photographs and information: https://bit.ly/3KrqvKs.
The giant swallowtail, Papilio Cresphontes Cramer, is said to be very abundant in Florida. The caterpillar has been said to be a pest, and has been known as “orangedogs,” as it feeds heavily on citrus leaves. The wings are magnificent with a forewing span of 11.7 to 17.5 cm for males and 13.5 to 18.8 cm for females.