Named after a Bird – the Swallowtails Part II

As I’m on the subject of Swallowtails, I thought I’d do a quick separate entry for another beautiful member of the Papilionidae family, the Swallowtail (Papilio machaon). Again, it’s another big and stunning, eye-catching butterfly, which again, seems to like thistles here. It gets its name from similarities to the Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustico) due the the streamers from the wings and the blue and red coloured spots. I haven’t seen one in a while but I do know where I did see them and it’s only about 3km outside town. Right, where’s my camera – I’m off to see if I can find one if I can. If not, I’m sure I’ll find something else up there.