www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

I haven´t conviced my wife yet to leave last year grass along the fence of our garden and during clearing she found the pupa below:

http://traplican.rajce.idnes.cz/Motyli_2010-04-16/

Can you identify from these photos what it can be?

What a beauty!... sorry, no idea on ID, looks like a papilionid or peirid though .... are you going to hatch it out?...

With my limited knowledge of immature stages of European species, this looks like a Scarce Swallowtail (Iphiclides podalirius) to me.

Cheers,

- Pete

I agree, Pete - it looks exactly like podalirius. Here in CH these have just started emerging and are checking out the Prunus. So yours should be out any day now, Traplican...

Guy

Thanks Guy. So, given the date, it seems that this species gets through at least 2 broods a year (no doubt depending on locality)?

Cheers,

- Pete

Thanks Pete and Guy for identification and Paul for compliment. I just have look to the photo of O. podalirius pupa and it seems so.

I have inserted the pupa to the pot with bottom strewed by last year grass and puteed it do the basement window (I was afraid that puting to the room might cause premature breed).

Thanks, traplican.

Just make sure it has something to crawl onto to expands its wings. Like most swallowtail pupa, it should have been suspended on a platform, attached by a silken girdle and its cremaster. See:

gallery/images/upload/9091f58a1402c0526 ... d8e07d.jpg

Cheers,

- Pete

Pete Eeles wrote:Thanks Guy. So, given the date, it seems that this species gets through at least 2 broods a year (no doubt depending on locality)?

In Switzerland it is double-brooded in the Rhône Valley, the valleys south of the Rhône and in Ticino. It is single-brooded in the Alps and north of the Alps.

Guy

Thanks Guy!

Cheers,

- Pete

I have inserted some plum twigs. Unluckily I haven't succeeded in substitution of broken cremaster (attemted by loop made from thin grass stalk but pupa 2x fault) so I left it lay on the bottom. It has twigs for climbing and I thing enough place for expanding of wings.