Papilio ophidicephalus

Emperor swallowtail
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Lepidoptera
Family: Papilionidae
Genus: Papilio
Species:
P. ophidicephalus
Binomial name
Papilio ophidicephalus
Oberthür, 1878
Synonyms
  • Papilio ophidicephalus chirinda var. barnesi van Son, 1939

Papilio ophidicephalus, the emperor swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. It is found in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The wingspan is 90–110 mm in males and 100–120 mm in females. It has two broods, one from August to December and the second from January to April.

The larvae feed on Clausena inqequalis, Calodendrum capense, Citrus species, Clausena anisata, Zanthoxylum capense and other Zanthoxylum species.