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Battus polydamas, also known as the gold rim swallowtail, the Polydamas swallowtail or the tailless swallowtail, is a species of butterfly in the family Papilionidae, found in the neotropic ecozone of South America, the southeastern U.S. and Mexico. The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 10th edition of Systema Naturae, published in 1758. Its wingspan is 90 to 120 mm (3.5 to 4.7 in) without the tail. The oversides of the wings are black, with a broad submarginal band formed by large yellow spots. The undersides of the forewings have the same pattern, while the hindwings have a submarginal row of red lunules. The larvae feed on Aristolochia plant species.
This picture shows the underside of a B. p. jamaicensis butterfly, a subspecies endemic to Jamaica.Photograph credit: Charles J. Sharp