Swede’s PhotographsMay 14, 2025

Whispers of Spring

Charlie and I just returned from our walk—not just any walk, but the farthest I’ve gone in over a decade. We ventured to a spot I used to visit several times a week, back when I ran the distance instead of walked. Along the way, I spotted a butterfly and initially thought it was a Red-spotted Admiral. Curious to confirm, I turned to Microsoft Copilot, which identified it as a Pipevine Swallowtail (Battus philenor) resting on a Heal-all (Prunella vulgaris).

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#photo #photography #photographer #photographylovers #wildlife #nature #insects #butterflies #PipevineSwallowtail

MikeFJul 15, 2024
Didn't do too well with birds at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, yesterday, but the insect clade, especially Lepidoptera, was representing... Here are a few pics of some Pipevine Swallowtails, the first two doing some aerial courting...
Pipevines have a wide but scattered distribution from southern Ontario down through Central America. They are named for their larval preference for Pipevine plants (Aristolochia) from which they sequester toxins for defense. Their hindwing is iridescent blue, a warning color to would-be predators.
#insects #lepidoptera #PipevineSwallowtail #insectphotography #biodiversity #naturephotography #wildlifephotography
Ryan MikulovskyMay 18, 2024

Lots of Pipevine Swallowtail butterflies feasting on purple thistle flower nectar at a wildlife refuge today. #PipevineSwallowtail #Butterfly #Fujifilm

Ryan MMay 18, 2024
Lots of Pipevine Swallowtail butterflies feasting on purple thistle flower nectar at a wildlife refuge today. #PipevineSwallowtail #Butterfly #Fujifilm
Show threadAvi Rappoport (avirr)Mar 11, 2024

@iBlame We’ve successfully nurtured the caterpillars but never see the butterfly. I guess we need different flowers, any suggestions for nearly-coastal California?

#PipevineSwallowtail

Show threadMalkit FoxdaleFeb 17, 2024
Update, the pipevine swallowtail emerged from it's chrysalis yesterday. I had to bring it inside a few months ago while I was cleaning up the yard. It had been detached from the fencing. #butterfly #PipevineSwallowtail #crysalis #insects
Environmental EccentricFeb 2, 2023
She was sharp.
More like a thistle
Than a lily
All serrations and prickles
Her wildness adapted to climates
Less hospitable.
And yet she bloomed
Soft flowers
Rising past the spines
To nurture those
Who loved her
For the unblunted edges
Of her soul.
K. Stanley
#Thistle #PipeVineSwallowtail #BumbleBee #Poetry
Fallon StoneNov 22, 2022
#Photomonday #PipevineSwallowtail #Caterpillar #nature #photography