Butterfly Beauty - Eastern Black Swallowtail- Thanks to West Side Market in Manhattan

This experienced butterfly, (a bit faded and some shredding in the wings,)
stayed all day yesterday and all morning today: It looks like an Eastern Black Swallowtail, the state butterfly of Oklahoma. It got used to me and was quite tame.

HERE is a video that at 30 seconds shows how VORACIOUSLY this little bonehead was drinking!
and HERE is another shortie.

This purple flowered tree is a Duranta. The WestSide Market, a great little place in Manhattan Kansas for beautiful things and plants and food sold me this tree for half off and it is a hit with the creatures!
click pic to enlarge

Eastern Black Swallowtail with Shredded Wings

 It was very faded compared to most, drank and drank for 2 straight days, and see the Shredded wings

swallowtail on duranta

Eastern Black Swallowtail in Kansas

Butterfly Beauty

morning light enhanced

i have about 400 more pics, i was charmed by this butterfly and hope it stays a long while. i have lots of herbs like dill for it to lay eggs on. i have a film of the Monarchs in the yard that tried to chase it off of the david phlox but it stayed and now the monarchs, which are LARGE this year, have moved on to the other flowers.

Eastern Black Swallowtail Butterfly Poster- click pic to see

Thanks to Mom for really magnifying her children's interest in butterflies.