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Hello. I wasn't sure where best to post this.
I've been given a jar with a Swallowtail chrysalis in the bottom and a bit of carrot leaf. Not ideal (!) Apparently it was still a caterpillar when it went in the jar last week. Can anyone help with what I can do to give it the best chance of overwintering - or is it a lost cause? Thanks for any suggestions.

My technique with Orange Tip pupae would probably work with Swallowtails.

I keep them initially in dark area in garden shed. Then after a cold spell, I bring them indoors - still in their boxes - and store in the fridge. There is no need for any air holes in the boxes. The reason for the fridge is to stop them emerging unnaturally early (as is often the case with bred butterflies). So with Swallowtail, I would suggest around early to mid May take out of fridge and return to the shed. Must not be in direct sun. Then it should emerge at fairly close to the natural wild time.

I - or more correctly my wife - has just rescued a captive bred Orange Tip that had escaped and pupated behind a window blind. It wasn't noticed until the blind was fully raised for window cleaning. It - named Jack or Stella depending what gender it turns out to be - has now joined its colleagues in the shed. Had it been left indoors - where there is central heating - it would most likely emerged absurdly early around February next year.

Jack