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Spicebush Swallowtail Caterpillar

Spicebush Swallowtail Caterpillar line art illustration (click image to enlarge)

Spicebush Swallowtail Caterpillar full color illustration (click image to enlarge)

Artist's notes:

The Spicebush Swallowtail Caterpillar was completed on 11.26.2010. While doing some research on some butterflies, I came across this amazing caterpillar. Obviously the color and the remarkable eye spot really jumped out at me. The upside down heart shapes along the insects body also made it a very desirable caterpillar to draw. The illustration is based on a photo by Jonathan Mays

Info about the Spicebush Swallowtail Caterpillar:

The Spicebush Swallowtail Caterpillar is the larval stage of the Spicebush Swallowtail Butterfly. This insect is usually found in deciduous woods or woody swamps of the eastern parts of the United States and southern Ontario. The caterpillars live in folded leaf shelters and eat the leaves of the sassafras or spicebush. The most notable markings on the caterpillar is the usually large eye-spot, which is used to confuse and discourage potential predators.