Polydamas Swallowtail Butterfly

Although uniform in appearance throughout its range in North, Central, and South America, the polydamas swallowtail butterfly displays considerable variation in the Caribbean, with almost every island featuring its own subspecies. Some entomologists consider the polydamas swallowtail butterfly an excellent illustration of the concept of a super-species, a single wide-ranging, genetically rich species that can diversify, specialize, and adapt to local environmental conditions when populations become geographically isolated.