Papilio palamedes
In 3 days ~10%
Papilio palamedes, the Palamedes swallowtail or laurel swallowtail, is a North American butterfly in the family Papilionidae. The upperside of the wings is blackish brown with both wings having a yellow postmedian band and a yellow submarginal band. There is a yellow bar at the end of the forewing cell. The underside of the wings is black with the forewing having a yellow postmedian band and a yellow submarginal band. The hindwing has a few colored bands; the first being cream; the second, orange; the third, blue; and the fourth, orange. There is a yellow streak on the inner margin of the hindwing which runs parallel to the body. The wingspan ranges from 4+1⁄2 to 5+1⁄8 inches (11 to 13 cm).
This species may be found in habitats such as cypress swamplands, coastal swamplands, wet riparian forests, bay forests, and savannas in the southeastern United States and northeastern Mexico. Their longer tongues allow for specific plant-pollinator relationships with plant species such as Platanthera ciliaris in coastal-plain habitats.
The Palamedes swallowtail is encountered from May to October in southeastern Virginia and from March to December... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Big Cypress National Preserve | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Cumbres de Monterrey National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 3 | Congaree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 4 | Everglades National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge | 🇺🇸 United States |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Palamedes Swallowtail sighting in Houston on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 978th most-seen of the 1057 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Palamedes Swallowtail in Houston on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Palamedes Swallowtail sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 3
Of the 3 cities where we can rate Palamedes Swallowtail sightings, Houston ranks 3rd at under 5%. The best odds are in Monterrey (México, about 10%) and Miami (United States, under 5%).
Same genus: Papilio
The closest relatives of the Palamedes Swallowtail that you can see in Houston (genus Papilio, Common Swallowtails) are Black Swallowtail (about 20%), Spicebush Swallowtail (about 10%) and Eastern Giant Swallowtail (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Palamedes Swallowtail is recorded against all the insects logged in Houston (5 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
