How does eButterfly deal with this Tiger Swallowtail ID issue: Glassberg’s “A Swift Guide to Butterflies of North America” says (p. 28): …there appears to be a broad hybrid band where Canadian [Tiger Swallowtails] and Eastern [Tiger Swallowtails] meet, at least in New England; they might best be treated as one species.
Which ID should we use?
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Hey @grnmtn, thanks for the excellent question!
That is quite an exciting and still debated topic. Luckily, the species identification on eButterfly comes from ALL our community members (including yourself), so there is no need for us to decide on a CTS or an ETS; the community will vote for the best ID of each observation based on the images, time of flight, location, etc.
You can find a useful infographic of how our Identification system works here: New Identification and Vetting System: Help Center (e-butterfly.org)
Please let me know if this answers your question
Rodrigo Solis
Human Network and Data Coordinator
Good question! There is an article here Ontario Insects, that describes the (three!?) Tiger Swallowtails in Ontario. That two of these (Canadian and Eastern) seem to be distinct species (rather than subsp) seems to have been demonstrated. Not sure about the “Midsummer” Tiger. Use of AI to discriminate between species is evolving, but whether the AI will be inclined to be a “lumper” or a “splitter” remains to be seen. I find the field distinctions between the canadensis and glaucus based on wing patterns to be subtle to say the least, although breeding strategy (one or two broods) and preferred foodplant would seem good distinctions, strongly linked to geography. Where i live in Quebec, I think I can confidently stick with P. canadensis. cheers.
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