Pollinator
Western tiger swallowtail
Papilio rutulus
The bright tiger swallowtail of the West, at home along streams.
- Family
- Papilionidae (swallowtails)
- Wingspan
- 2.75 to 4 in (7 to 10 cm)
- Flight season
- Spring to fall
- Range
- Western North America
- Caterpillar food
- Willow, cottonwood, aspen, cherry
- Conservation
- Secure and widespread
The western tiger swallowtail is the familiar big yellow swallowtail of the West, its wings crossed by black tiger stripes and tipped with a tail, common wherever streamside trees grow.
It sails through canyons, gardens, and city streets alike, gathering at mud and nectaring on many flowers.
Caterpillars feed on the leaves of willow, cottonwood, aspen, and cherry.
Plants for the western tiger swallowtail
4 caterpillar host plants and 22 documented nectar plants. Pick a role, then narrow with the filters below.
26 plants
Host
Chokecherry Prunus virginiana Nectar
1 of 2 Butterfly milkweed Asclepias tuberosa Nectar
1 of 2 Salmonberry Rubus spectabilis Nectar
1 of 3 Wild bergamot Monarda fistulosa Nectar
1 of 2 Common Snowberry Symphoricarpos albus Nectar
1 of 2 Buttonbush Cephalanthus occidentalis Nectar
1 of 2 Big Sagebrush Artemisia tridentata Host
1 of 2 American plum Prunus americana Host
1 of 2 Fire cherry Prunus pensylvanica Nectar
California buckeye Aesculus californica Nectar
1 of 2 Showy milkweed Asclepias speciosa Nectar
1 of 2 Spreading dogbane Apocynum androsaemifolium Nectar
1 of 3 Lewis' mock orange Philadelphus lewisii Host
Hollyleaf cherry Prunus ilicifolia Nectar
1 of 2 Coulter's matilija poppy Romneya coulteri Nectar
1 of 2 Fivespot Nemophila maculata Nectar
1 of 3 Western columbine Aquilegia formosa Nectar
1 of 2 Leopard Lily Lilium pardalinum Nectar
1 of 2 Scarlet monkeyflower Erythranthe cardinalis Nectar
1 of 3 Western azalea Rhododendron occidentale Nectar
1 of 2 Humboldt's Lily Lilium humboldtii Nectar
1 of 2 Western blue flag Iris missouriensis Nectar
1 of 2 Sierra Tiger Lily Lilium parvum Nectar
1 of 2 Sierra larkspur Delphinium glaucum Nectar
1 of 3 Scarlet bugler Penstemon centranthifolius Nectar
Fireweed Chamerion angustifolium
1 of 21 of 21 of 31 of 21 of 21 of 21 of 21 of 21 of 21 of 21 of 31 of 21 of 21 of 31 of 21 of 21 of 31 of 21 of 21 of 21 of 21 of 3No plants match those filters.
Sources
- Butterflies and Moths of North America ↗
- iNaturalist ↗
- Plant associations from GloBI flower-visit records and NPIN larval-host data. Butterfly photographs via iNaturalist (CC BY).