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Earlier instars are yellow with a black head capsule. [5] After feeding on their hostplant and growing in size, the caterpillars have a light green color. After almost a month of growth, the caterpillars are around 10 mm long (.4 in). [2] The last instar larva is green with three dark green stripes. [5] Larvae often emerge in April and May. [3]
The newly hatched caterpillar is about 0.5 cm long and is yellowish green. In later instars the colour changes to a leafy green. The head is green and spotted with tiny black tubercules. The spiracles are covered with a continuous white line. Each segment of the body bears tiny shiny black tubercules.
As the caterpillars grow larger into the second larval instar, they become yellow green. During the third, fourth, and fifth instars, the cecropia moth becomes rather large and bluish green. At these final stages, the tubercles become blue, yellow or orange, depending on location on the body, while the black hairs are eventually lost.
The yellow morph is similar to the male, but with a conspicuous band of blue spots along the hindwing, while the dark morph is almost completely black. The green eggs are laid singly on plants of the families Magnoliaceae and Rosaceae. Young caterpillars are brown and white; older ones are green with two black, yellow, and blue eyespots on the ...
Papilio polyxenes, the (eastern) black swallowtail, American swallowtail or parsnip swallowtail, [4] is a butterfly found throughout much of North America. An extremely similar-appearing species, Papilio joanae, occurs in the Ozark Mountains region, but it appears to be closely related to Papilio machaon, rather than P. polyxenes.
The caterpillars of Papilio species are usually smooth and vary in color from green to yellow orange. In addition, they have black markings to mimic the appearance of bird droppings or the head of another bug with large "eyes". [9] The eyespot consists of areas of yellow ringed with black with a smaller, light purple spot (also ringed in black ...
Even the palest C. croceus tends to have more black on the upperside, however, in particular on the hindwings. Young caterpillars are yellow-green with a black head. Later they become completely dark green, with a white red-spotted lateral line after the third moult. The pupae are green and have a yellow side stripe. [11]
Young caterpillars are black with lighter colored transverse stripes. Older larvae have two color forms. The more common form is green with yellow and white transverse stripes; the rarer form is black and banded with white and orange. In both forms, between the swollen thorax and the abdomen, there is a yellow, black, and bluish-white band.