We have a young tulip poplar tree and tonight, there were three Tiger Swallowtail caterpillars in their fourth intar (green) and they had practically defoliated the entire tree. :-( We removed them, but I want them to grow to maturity, so where can I put them where they will continue to feed, besides my little tree?
What do Tiger Swallowtails eat besides Tulip Poplar leaves?
Prunus domestica, P. americana, P. serotina, P. pennsylvanica, P. virginiana
Crataegus spp.
Malus pumila, Cydonia oblonga, Carpinus caroliniana, Alnus incana,
Carya spp.
Cinnamomum camphora, Lindera benzoin, Sassafras albidum var. molle
Oh, cool! They eat sassafras! I've got plenty. Thanks for the info.
plantnutga
I talked to an entomologist, and she said they aren't picky. She said they'd eat birch leaves, so I relocated the three of them to our River Birch.
Yes, thanks for the information!
Good luck with your swallowtail cats.
I suppose this crop of cats will winter over in a chrysalis since it's late September already? Anybody know?
http://www.butterfliesandmoths.org/species?l=1372&chosen_state=39*Ohio
It's good to know about the Tulip Poplar being a host plant. I haven't seen any ETS cats around although I do see the ETS BFs so I at least know where to look now for them.
There are three different kinds of Tiger Swallowtail - I went w/ the one kbaumle would most likely have given location and w/ proven host plants. Yes, some TS eat Betula.
You are probably right tobasco - there really isn't time to have another flight b/f cold weather would prevent flying. Even here in TX the butterflies are winding down their season. Last year, I saw some small orange butterflies and some yellow ones (didn't get a chance to identify) a week before Christmas during a warm spell. Although I doubt they had the time to mate and grow cats b/f it turned cold, it was nice to see them fly in December.
Wouldn't it be fun to know where they have chrysalis and watch them in the spring?
You know, I was wondering about that. We do have a butterfly house and I thought about putting them in it, but they still need food at this point.
Up until a few days ago, we had Monarch cats, too. They've been munching for about a month now.
Oh, and Eastern Black Swallowtails...
