Caterpillar of Klack SwallowtailKuttetfly 



Spying among the wild flowers growing in the apple tree com- 

 munity, I find a colorful black swallowtail caterpillar resting on 

 a wild carrot leaf his favorite food. He's a fine, large fellow 

 about an inch and a half long, with a bright green body trimmed 

 in black bands and orange-yellow dots. 



After hatching from a tiny, ball-shaped egg (often called a 

 "witch's pearl"), the caterpillar dedicates its life to eating. It 

 grows by molting, shedding its skin for a new and larger size 

 when the old becomes too tight. 



This caterpillar has an odd way of protecting itself from birds 

 and other creatures that might like to dine on its juicy body. 

 When annoyed it suddenly rears its head and the front part of 

 its body, and at the same time two soft, orange-colored horns 

 shoot out from its head. As these formidable horns appear, they 

 give off a sickening odor, and the combination of terrifying 

 appearance and foul odor serves to frighten off most of the cater- 

 pillar's enemies. Two or three broods of swallowtail caterpillars 

 become butterflies each summer; but sometimes the last of these 

 broods will be caught in the chrysalis stage by cold, early autumn 

 weather. Yet they do not die; instead, in chrysalis form, they 

 endure the cold until May warmth rekindles the slumbering 

 spark of life within. The interrupted cycle begins anew, and 

 eventually a stylish black swallowtail butterfly emerges. Two 

 rows of yellow stitching adorn the lower edge of each wing, and 

 a few large yellow spots decorate the space between the rows of 

 stitching on the hind wings. And at the inner edge of each hind 

 wing is the swallowtail's beauty spot a bright red dot. 



