The lemon butterfly, or Papilio demoleus, is an invasive pest species affecting citrus crops, characterized by its distinct physical features and life cycle stages including eggs, larvae, pupae, and adults. It poses significant economic threats to citrus agriculture due to its rapid reproduction and potential for extensive defoliation of young trees. Control measures include chemical sprays, neem extract, and biological methods using parasitoids.

1. LEMON BUTTERFLY
( PAPILIO DEMOLEUS)

2. SYNOPSIS
Introduction
Scientific classification
Physical description
Identification
Egg stage
Larva stage
Pupal stage
Adults
Life – cycle
 parasitism and predation
 Economic significance
Control of Papilio demoleus

3. INTRODUCTION
Papilio demoleus also called as the lemon butterfly is a common and
widespread swallowtailbutterfly.
Common names include – lime butterfly, lemon butterfly, lime swallowtail
and chequered swallowtail.
These names come from the host plants which are usually citrus species
such ascultivated lime.
Like most swallowtailbutterflies, it does not have aprominent tail.
Thisbutterfly is a pest and invasive species, found from asiato australia.
It has alsospread to various islandsin the western hemisphere.

4. PAPILIO DEMOLEUS

5. SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION
Kingdom- Animalia
Phylum - Arthropoda
Class - Insecta
Order – Lepidoptera
Family – Papilionidae
Genus – Papilio
Species – demoleus
BINOMIAL NAME- Papilio demoleus , Linnaeus 1758

6. PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
 The butterfly is tailless andhas awingspan of 80-100mm.
 Background colour is black and has a broad , irregular yellow band on its
wings.
 The upper hindwing has ared tornal spot with blue edging around it.
 As the caterpillar ages, its hunger for leaf tissue continues to grow.
 Antennae dark reddish brown, with head thorax and abdomen dusky
blackwith lateral longitudinal lines on the last.

7. IDENTIFICATION
 Eggs are small in size, round and pale in colour.
The caterpillar is yellowish green with a few oblique brownish strips.
It alsohas ahorn likestructure on the dorsal side of the body.
The adult is a large beautiful butterfly with green coloured wings having
blackspots.
The most significant feature of identification is the red tornal spot with blue
edging and the adult forms have orange spots.

8. EGG, LARVA AND ADULT STAGES

9. EGG STAGE
Eggs are basallyflattened and smooth.
Females lay eggs singly near the edges of the host plant leaves.
Pale yellowish in colour measuring about 1 – 1.5 mm

10. LARVA STAGE
first larva instars are black with a black head, with two sub-dorsal rows of short
fleshyspines.
2nd ,3rd and4th instarshavea dark brown,glossyheadcapsule.
The anterior, middle, and posterior parts have broad transverse off- white bands
givinglarva abirddroppingcamouflagepattern.
Thereisanadditionalrowofpairedfleshyspinesonthethorax.
Theheadisbrown,smoothwithglossyshorthairs.
Fifthinstarsare cylindricallyshapedandtaperedanteriorly.
Two pairs of fleshy spines are located posteriorly and again immediately behind
thehead.

11. THIRD, FOURTH, FIFTH INSTARS

12. FEATURES OF FIFTH INSTARS
The spines are very short, and gradually change from yellowish-
orange to green.
They have rows of orange or pink spots edged with black laterally and
sub- dorsally with black transverse markings located anteriorly, with
more scattered blackmarkings laterallyat the rear end.
There is a white sub- lateral line along the abdominal area just above
the legs.
The fleshy spinesare orange.
The head is large and brown with a dull orange inverted V mark.

13. PUPAL STAGE
The pupae are stout, rugose and about 30 mm long.
They are attached to thicker stems of the host plants, or to adjacent sticks
and rocks.
The color is dimorphic ,typical for many swallowtails, being either pale
green or pink- brown with other variable cryptic markings.
The green form is usuallymarked dorsally with yellow.
The pupal duration is variable, about 30 days in spring, 18 days in summer,
or sometimes even longer with one record of about 280 days.

14. PUPASTAGE

15. ADULTS
 The adults range in wingspan from 80-100mm.The hindwing has no
tail.
The upper portion of the forewing is largely black and the outer wing
margin hasa series of irregular yellow spots.
Two yellow spots are seen on the upper end at the discal cell with
several scattered yellow spots in the apicalregion.
The upper hind wing has a red tornal spot and the discal black band is
dusted with yellow scales.
The adults fly in every month but are more abundant after monsoons.

16. ADULT

17. LIFE- CYCLE
The females lays eggs nearly 100-150 eggs singly or in groups.
Number of generations per year- 8
Duration of egg stage – 3 to 6 days.
Duration of larvastage – 12 to 22 days
Duration of pupa stage-8 to 23 days
Duration of adult stage – 4 to 6 days.

19. PARASITISM AND PREDATION
Despite their two- winged camouflage scheme , some caterpillars of
Papilio demoleus are found by parasitic wasps which lay dozens of
eggs in them.
The parasitic wasplarva eat the caterpillar from the inside.
Initially the vital organs are avoided, but by the time the caterpillar is
ready to pupate even the vital organs are consumed.
Shortly before, or soon after the caterpillar pupates, the parasitoids
emerges from their host thus killingit.

20. ECONOMICSIGNIFICANCE
The lime butterfly is an economic pest on many cultivated citrus
species in India andmiddle east.
Due to its capability for rapid population growth under favourable
circumstances and its having been recorded to have five generations in
a year in temperate regions of China, it is considered a serious
potential threat.
 The caterpillars can completely defoliate young citrus trees (below 2
feet) and devastate citrus nurseries. In mature trees, caterpillars may
prefer young leaves andleaf flush..

21. CONTROL OF PAPILIO DEMOLEUS
Spray trees with endosulfan 35 EC/ methamidophos 60SL ( 200ml/ 100
L of water).
Spraying 3% neem extract is alsoeffective.
Trichogramma species..are effective egg parasitoids.
Hand picking of larvae.