: any of various usually large brightly marked butterflies (family Papilionidae, especially genus Papilio) with each hind wing typically having an elongated process
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At the time, conservationists fretted that the enormous hurricane was going to wipe out the last of the island’s Schaus’ swallowtails (Papilio aristodemus), a species of endangered black-and-yellow butterfly native to southern Florida and now found only on Elliott Key and nearby Key Largo.—Marina Wang, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Apr. 2025 For example, about 18,000 species of butterfly exist – think monarch, zebra swallowtail or cabbage white.—Nicholas Green, The Conversation, 24 Mar. 2025 While that swallowtail languished in my board bag, the wide, early-rise nose of the Transition Finder provided unbelievable buoyancy on hip-deep tree runs, mini-truck-sized pillow poppers, and sidecountry sojourns.—Drew Zieff, Outside Online, 26 Sep. 2024 For example, some swallowtail butterflies, particularly the black swallowtail, use plants in the parsley family as host plants.—Anne Readel, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Sep. 2024 See All Example Sentences for swallowtail
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