Protographium marcellus
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~50%
Eurytides marcellus, the zebra swallowtail (formerly listed under genera Protographium, Iphiclides, Graphium and Papilio by some authorities), is a swallowtail butterfly native to the eastern United States and south-eastern Canada. It is the state butterfly of Tennessee. Its distinctive wing shape and long tails make it easy to identify, and its black-and-white-striped pattern is reminiscent of a zebra. The butterflies are closely associated with pawpaws, and are rarely found far from these trees. The green or black caterpillars feed on the leaves of various pawpaw species, while the adults feed on flower nectar and minerals from damp soil.
The zebra swallowtail has a wingspan of 6.4 to 10.4 cm (2.5 to 4.1 in). The triangular wings are white to greenish white with black longitudinal stripes. A pair of swordlike tails extend from the hindwings. The inner margin of the hindwing has two blue spots on the corner and a red spot near the body. A red stripe runs along the middle of the ventral hindwing. P. marcellus has two seasonal forms, one occurring in the spring and the other in the summer. Spring forms are smaller, more white, and have short, black tails with white... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Congaree National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Shenandoah National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Baltimore | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Miami | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Zebra Swallowtail sighting in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, based on 34 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 146th most-seen of the 822 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April and May
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Zebra Swallowtail in Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a given day, against under 5% in July to February, the lowest months.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Zebra Swallowtail sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 3
Of the 3 parks where we can rate Zebra Swallowtail sightings, Great Smoky Mountains National Park ranks 3rd at about 10%. The best odds are in Congaree National Park (United States, about 40%) and Shenandoah National Park (United States, about 10%).
Same family: Papilionidae
The closest relatives of the Zebra Swallowtail that you can see in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (family Papilionidae, Swallowtails and Parnassians) are Pipevine Swallowtail (about 70%), Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (about 50%) and Spicebush Swallowtail (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Zebra Swallowtail is recorded against all the insects logged in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (34 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
