Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 day ago
A swallowtail lives two very different lives. As a caterpillar, it can eat only a short list of host plants — and for some species, that list is remarkably small. As an adult, it drinks nectar from all kinds of blooms. And then there’s the part that surprises people: swallowtails, especially males, often gather at mud puddles in summer to sip up salts and minerals they can’t get from nectar.
Watch to learn more about these graceful pollinators?
A swallowtail lives two very different lives. As a caterpillar, it can eat only a short list of host plants — and for some species, that list is remarkably small. As an adult, it drinks nectar from all kinds of blooms. And then there’s the part that surprises people: swallowtails, especially males, often gather at mud puddles in summer to sip up salts and minerals they can’t get from nectar.
Watch to learn more about these graceful pollinators?
