Old World Swallowtail

Where to see

Old World Swallowtail

Papilio machaon

Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park leads · 16 parks ranked by real sighting rates

Parks Ranked

Share of wildlife watchers reporting an Old World Swallowtail during a day in the park, from citizen-science data (GBIF)

#ParkCountrySighting
1 Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park 🇲🇳 Mongolia
~50%
2 Triglav National Park 🇸🇮 Slovenia
~40%
3 Mercantour National Park 🇫🇷 France
~30%
4 Vanoise National Park 🇫🇷 France
~30%
5 Ordesa y Monte Perdido National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~30%
6 Pyrénées National Park 🇫🇷 France
~30%
7 Ecrins National Park 🇫🇷 France
~30%
8 Wrangell-St. Elias National Park 🇺🇸 United States
~30%
9 Cévennes National Park 🇫🇷 France
~20%
10 Aigüestortes National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~20%
11 Picos de Europa National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~20%
12 Sierra Nevada National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~20%
13 Nikko National Park 🇯🇵 Japan
~20%
14 Monfragüe National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
~20%
15 Kluane National Park 🇨🇦 Canada
~20%
16 Bavarian Forest National Park 🇩🇪 Germany
~20%

Before you go

Which is the best park to see an Old World Swallowtail?

Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park

In Gobi Gurvansaikhan National Park, Mongolia, about 50% of wildlife watchers report an Old World Swallowtail sighting on a given day, the highest of the 16 parks where we can rate it, from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see an Old World Swallowtail?

It depends on the park

In the top parks, the best months are April in Triglav National Park (about 50%) and April and June–July in Mercantour National Park (about 40%), as the share of wildlife watchers who report an Old World Swallowtail on a given day. Each park's Old World Swallowtail page has the full month-by-month chart.