PAPILIONIDAE seen near WRC

I have always had trouble identifying butterflies from the various field guides and the first example below shows clearly how different a live animal is from the dead specimen illustrated on the left, which has the wings relaxed and the pattern destroyed. We have tried as far as possible to obtain live photos for this guide.

Drawing of dead specimen	Description	Photo of Live specimen
	The Jamaican Swallowtail (Papilio thoas melonius) is the smallest of the Papilio thoas subspecies. Compare dead specimen with live animal on the right!
	Jamaican Giant Swallowtail Butterfly (Pterourus homerus -formerly called Papilio homerus) at Windsor (14/10/99). Endangered and listed on Appendix I of CITES; this endemic species, the largest swallowtail butterfly in the New World, historically ranged in at least seven parishes across the island but is presently restricted to the Cockpit Country and sections of the Blue and John Crow Mountains. In 1988 it was listed in the World's top twelve endangered species of all categories by the IUCN. Research of the population in the Blue and John Crow Mountains indicates that this species suffers high mortality due to egg parasitism when there are high levels of forest degradation in its breeding areas. The persistence of this eastern population is of major concern and the Cockpit Country may represent the only viable population of Pterourus homerus. Adults have been observed throughout the Cockpit Country, most commonly in areas of high relative humidity (H. Davis In prep.) We are also pleased to announce that we have received funding from the Dutch foundation Zoos Help to carry out surveys for this species (and associated education) in the Mount Diablo area of St Anns
	Blue Swallowtail or Jamaican Kite Swallowtail (Eurytides marcellinus) at Windsor (09/05/01). This is one of our endemic butterflies and St Thomas was reported to be the only known breeding site (Jamaica Naturalist Vol 4 Dec 1994). We have now observed this butterfly at Windsor in large numbers for two consecutive years: however, the sightings last about a month and then there are no more. A strong direct flier, the Blue Swallowtail always seems to be going somewhere with a mission! We were pleased to obtained our first photos of this animal (rather battered) trapped inside the house.
	The Pelaus Swallowtail (Papilio pelaus pelaus) at Windsor (28/07/04)
	Thersites "I would thou didst itch from head to foot and I had the scratching of thee" says Thersites to Ajax in Shakespeare's "Troilus and Cressida"

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