Black Swallowtail Butterfly and Pink Azalea compete for attention.
Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, Charleston, SC
April 7, 2022
Swallowtail After The Rain
Tag Archives: Black Swallowtail
Black Swallowtail on Wildflowers
A large patch of wildflowers was in full bloom on the path across Bulls Island.
Photobomber.
A steady breeze prevented any really crisp images, but the butterfly angles are fun.
April 1, 2022
Black Swallowtail on Butterfly Bush
Helping the Butterfly Bush live up to its name a Black Swallowtail was enjoying the blooms.
I may have mentioned this before, but I have not seen many butterflies of any kind so far this summer.
This one was a real beauty and a light breeze did not deter him from feeding.
Black Swallowtail Butterfly on Thistle, Year 2
About a mile or so from where I saw the Black Swallowtail Butterflies for my post from March of 2020 I saw a similar scene April 12.
This year’s thistle flowers were a bit past their prime.
And the butterfly was showing some signs of wear, or a battle.
The wing tears did not impair his mobility, as he nimbly circled around the plant checking each of the spidery blooms.
Black Swallowtail Butterfly on Pink
Black Swallowtail Butterfly on Pink
A pretty Black Swallowtail was keen on these pink blooms.
Once he found one to his liking he worked methodically around a flower head before moving on.
Black Swallowtail Upside Down
This Black Swallowtail took full advantage of a Buttonbush flower cluster, checking it out from multiple angles while upside down.
He rotated around the orb while constantly manipulating the flowers.
In typical butterfly fashion when he was done he just let go and flitted off.
Black Swallowtail Butterfly on Thistle
A patch of thistle was growing at the edge of a parking area at Santee National Wildlife Refuge, Cuddo Unit. I suspect it was planted or at least encouraged by human intervention: it was a little too neat to be just wild.
An assortment of insects were working the thistle blooms, with a Black Swallowtail standing out.
The blooms were in all stages of development, some well on their way to releasing seeds for a new crop.
Black Swallowtail
A pair of Black Swallowtails were doing their thing along the edge of a pond.
Quick poses then flitting along at full speed constituted much of the action.
Then they stopped for an interaction, somewhat shielded from my view by tall grass.
I liked the intersection of the curlicue vine with the butterfly’s antennae and the nicer view of the blue wing spots in this last image.
April 28. 2020
Black Swallowtail Butterfly on Thistle
The four or five Swallowtails flitting around these thistle plants flew off when I drove by. I had room to stop, walked back and waited.
After a few minutes one returned and continued probing the thistle.
These butterflies were competing with some other flying insects, the tail end of one can be seen here sticking up out of the flower.
