Papilio


Papilio is a genus in the swallowtail butterfly family, Papilionidae, as well as the only representative of the tribe Papilionini. The word papilio is Latin for butterfly.
It includes the common yellow swallowtail, which is widespread in the Northern Hemisphere and the type species of the genus, as well as a number of other well-known North American species such as the western tiger swallowtail. Familiar species elsewhere in the world include the Mormons in Asia, the orchard and Ulysses swallowtails in Australia and the citrus swallowtail of Africa.
Older classifications of the swallowtails tended to use many rather small genera. More recent classifications have been more conservative, and as a result a number of former genera are now absorbed within Papilio. The genus as recognized by modern systems has about 200 members. The genus Chilasa is regarded as a subgenus of Papilio by some workers, as are the baggy-tailed swallowtails, although the latter taxon is usually considered a subgenus of Chilasa.
Many of the larvae resemble bird droppings during a development stage. Adults are edible to birds and some species are mimics.
Now included in the genus Papilio, are the former genera: Achillides, Eleppone, Druryia, Heraclides, Menelaides, Princeps, Pterourus, and Sinoprinceps.

Ecology

In their laval form, members of Papilio typically feed upon plants of Rutaceae including common ornamental and agriculturally important species such as Citrus species, Murraya species, Choisya species and Calodendrum species. Caterpillars sequester terpenoids from their diet to produce a foul smelling oil used in defence.

Species

Listed alphabetically within groups.

subgenus: Papilio Linnaeus, 1758
, France
subgenus: Princeps Hübner,
, Madagascar
, India
subgenus: Chilasa Moore,
subgenus: Achillides Hübner,
subgenus: Heraclides Hübner,
subgenus: Pterourus Scopoli, 1777
subgenus: Sinoprinceps'' Hancock, 1983