Canadian Tiger Swallowtail
Papilio canadensis Rothschild & Jordan, 1906
Family: Papilionidae
Subfamily: Papilioninae
Identification: Smaller than Eastern or Western Tiger Swallowtails. Upperside of forewing with relatively broad black stripes; underside with marginal yellow spots merged into continuous band. Hindwing with numerous orange scales. Extremely rare black female form.
Wing Span: 2 5/8 - 3 1/8 inches (6.7 - 8 cm).
Life History: Males patrol to locate receptive females. Females lay eggs singly on surface of host plant leaves. Caterpillars eat leaves and rest on silken mats in shelters of curled leaves. Chrysalids hibernate.
Flight: One flight from May to mid-July.
Caterpillar Hosts: Leaves of birch (Betula), aspen (Populus), and black cherry (Prunus).
Adult Food: Nectar from flowers.
Habitat: Northern deciduous and evergreen-deciduous woods and forest edges.
Range: North America from central Alaska southeast across Canada and the northern Great Lakes states to northern New England.
Conservation: Not required.
NCGR: G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.
Management Needs: None noted.
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Verified Sightings
Displaying 1 - 24 of 74 verified sightings
Observation date: Jun 14, 2005
Submitted by: legacy.reporter (D. Lynn Scott)
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: legacy.verifier (The Lepidopterists' Society Season Summary)
Verified date: Sep 13, 2010
Observation date: Jun 19, 2009
Submitted by: BeaLaporte (Beatrice Laporte)
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: paulopler (Paul Opler)
Verified date: Nov 01, 2010
Observation date: May 29, 2012
Submitted by: Jody
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: May 30, 2012
Observation date: May 27, 2012
Submitted by: Jody
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: May 30, 2012
Observation date: May 21, 2012
Submitted by: dvanes12
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jul 23, 2012
Observation date: Jun 03, 2013
Submitted by: Colleen62
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jul 09, 2013
Observation date: Jun 08, 2013
Submitted by: Eelhsa
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Aug 25, 2013
Observation date: Aug 29, 2013
Submitted by: Canuq
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Aug 30, 2013
Observation date: Sep 03, 2013
Submitted by: Juliesavard78
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Sep 04, 2013
Observation date: Jun 15, 2013
Submitted by: soluslupus13
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jan 22, 2014
Observation date: May 30, 2014
Submitted by: Cherylee Black
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: May 31, 2014
Observation date: Jun 08, 2014
Submitted by: Jody
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jun 09, 2014
Observation date: May 20, 2014
Submitted by: toddewen
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jun 09, 2014
Observation date: Jul 04, 2014
Submitted by: Pat Brown
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jul 05, 2014
Observation date: Jun 01, 2013
Submitted by: Chris Blomme
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jul 25, 2014
Observation date: May 30, 2015
Submitted by: BeaLaporte
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: May 30, 2015
Observation date: May 23, 2015
Submitted by: ShaunaRyner
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jun 11, 2015
Observation date: Jun 19, 2015
Submitted by: Chris Blomme
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jul 06, 2015
Observation date: Jul 23, 2015
Submitted by: plume2
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: TeaKH
Verified date: Aug 07, 2015
Observation date: Aug 11, 2015
Submitted by: Missmarple
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: TeaKH
Verified date: Nov 04, 2015
Observation date: Jun 16, 2016
Submitted by: johngor
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Sep 07, 2016
Observation date: Jun 07, 2017
Submitted by: Brighton
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jun 07, 2017
Observation date: Jun 14, 2017
Submitted by: LauraMaskell
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jun 30, 2017
Observation date: Jun 17, 2017
Submitted by: NatashaG
Region: Ontario, Canada
Verified by: rosslayberry
Verified date: Jul 19, 2017
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