Received Our Papilio rutulus From Albany, California

We have received our overwintering western tiger swallowtail (Papilio rutulus) pupae from Albany, California.

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Earlier, when we decided had most of our overwintering pupae sent to us on April 28, we were reluctant to also send the rutulus (Papilio rutulus) because they were not actually being kept in cold storage and could potentially (1) emerge during shipment and/or (2) emerge too soon after we receive them, before the willow (Salix) has completely grown out and the weather is warm. However, by now, the weather has taken what seems to be a permanent turn for the better and the willow has been grown out for a while now (actually, it already seems ​to be on somewhat of a decline as the local pests start attacking it and leaf quality deteriorates) so we had them sent.

We received them today and they are all in excellent condition. None of them are dead, although one of them, a male, must have eclosed during shipment because it was crippled under the petri dish when we opened it. As mentioned earlier, we knew that there would be a slight risk of this but in this case, it is not a big deal because none of the other pupae look to be close anyway. Interestingly, according to our mother before the pupae were sent, one of the pupae was pharate which she decided not to send. The out-of-sync-ness of their eclosions is probably normal as their first flight in the wild is very long and may or may not have to do with unnatural indoor conditions. 

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Brian Liang
Brian Liang is a student at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York pursuing an undergraduate degree in entomology. He is co-owner and a main contributor of the Liang Insects blog, insects articles, and site design. ​​​

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