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Lime Swallowtail
Papilio demoleus
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumArthropoda (Arthropods)
- ClassInsecta (Insects)
- OrderLepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)
- FamilyPapilionidae (Swallowtails and Parnassians)
- GenusPapilio (Common Swallowtails)
- SpeciesPapilio demoleus (Lime Swallowtail)
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~60%
5 Verified sightings at Minneriya National Park From 2019 to 2026
171 In all 17 parks
December Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted
About the Lime Swallowtail
Papilio demoleus is a common and widespread swallowtail butterfly. The butterfly is also known as the lemon butterfly and chequered swallowtail. These common names refer to their host plants, which are usually citrus species such as the cultivated lime. Unlike most swallowtail butterflies, it does not have a prominent tail. When the adult stage is taken into consideration, the lime swallowtail is the shortest-lived butterfly, with male adults dying after four days and females after a week. The butterfly is native to Asia and Australia, and can be considered an invasive pest in other parts of the world. The butterfly has spread to Hispaniola (in the Dominican Republic and Haiti) and the rest of the Antilles in the Western Hemisphere, and to Mahé, Seychelles.
The butterfly is tailless and has a wingspan 80–100 mm. Above, the background colour is black. A broad, irregular yellow band is found on the wings above, which is broken in the case of the forewing. Besides this, the butterfly has a large number of irregular spots on the wing. The upper hindwing has a red tornal spot with blue edging around it.
As the caterpillar ages, its hunger for leaf tissue continues to grow... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Lime Swallowtail in Minneriya National Park
LIVEiNaturalistGlobal Distribution
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Komodo National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 2 | Bandhavgarh National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Kanha National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Royal Bardia National Park | 🇳🇵 Nepal | |
| 6 | Satpura National Park | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Nitmiluk National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 8 | Cape Range | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 9 | Ningaloo Marine Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 10 | Cat Tien National Park | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 11 | Hattah-Kulkyne National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 12 | Doi Inthanon National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 13 | Minneriya National Park | 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | |
| 14 | Khao Yai National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 15 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 16 | Kakadu National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 17 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Cities Where Found
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Karachi | 🇵🇰 Pakistan | |
| 2 | Prayagraj | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 3 | Raipur | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 4 | Jabalpur | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 5 | Hanoi | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | |
| 6 | Durg | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 7 | Santo Domingo | 🇩🇴 Dominican Republic | |
| 8 | Madurai | 🇮🇳 India | |
| 9 | Jakarta | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 10 | Ho Chi Minh City | 🇻🇳 Vietnam |
Closest Relatives at Minneriya National Park
Before you go
What are the chances of seeing a Lime Swallowtail in Minneriya National Park?
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Lime Swallowtail sighting in Minneriya National Park on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 33rd most-seen of the 44 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 60%, if each day is a fresh chance.
When is the best time to see a Lime Swallowtail in Minneriya National Park?
October and December
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Lime Swallowtail in Minneriya National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January–February and April–September, the lowest months. Those are among Minneriya National Park's wettest months, with about 230 mm of rain a month against 20 mm in June.
What time of day is best to see a Lime Swallowtail?
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Lime 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.
Is Minneriya National Park the best place to see a Lime Swallowtail?
13th of 17
Of the 17 parks where we can rate Lime Swallowtail sightings, Minneriya National Park ranks 13th at about 10%. The best odds are in Komodo National Park (Indonesia, about 40%), Bandhavgarh National Park (India, about 30%) and Kanha National Park (India, about 30%).
Which relatives of the Lime Swallowtail live in Minneriya National Park?
Same genus: Papilio
The closest relatives of the Lime Swallowtail that you can see in Minneriya National Park (genus Papilio, Common Swallowtails) are Great Mormon Swallowtail (about 20%) and Common Mormon Swallowtail (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
Where does the Lime Swallowtail sighting chance come from?
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Lime Swallowtail is recorded against all the insects logged in Minneriya National Park (5 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.
