Scarce swallowtail
Despite its name, this butterfly is common across much of mainland Europe; being scarce only describes places at the far edge of its range.
| Where | Open scrub, orchards, and warm grassland |
|---|---|
| Size | 64 to 85 mm wingspan |
| When | March to October |
It is a large, pale creamy-yellow to whitish butterfly with bold black tiger-stripe markings across triangular wings, blue crescents near the hindwing edge, and a long, white-tipped tail on each hindwing.
Caterpillars feed mainly on blackthorn and other Prunus trees such as cherry and hawthorn, and the species overwinters as a pupa, forming a green chrysalis in summer broods and a buff-brown one in the generation that carries it through winter.
Traits
Habitat
Grassland
Colour
Yellow, White, Black
Active
Day
To people
Harmless
Activity through the year
Often confused with
The swallowtail has a strong yellow ground colour marked with black bars along the veins, unlike the scarce swallowtail's pale creamy background and bold black tiger stripes.
Questions
Is the Scarce swallowtail dangerous to people?
The Scarce swallowtail is harmless to people.
When can you see the Scarce swallowtail?
The Scarce swallowtail can be seen from March to October, by day.
Plate retouched from a photo by Didier Descouens, CC BY‑SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons Licence
The plate on this page is shared under the same licence as its source, CC BY-SA.
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Butterflies and moths›Swallowtails›Iphiclides
Last updated 2026-09-26. Every entry is checked against published sources.