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Papilio machaon, also known as the Old World swallowtail, is a butterfly of the family Papilionidae. It is present throughout the entire Palearctic region, ranging from western Europe and Russia to China and Japan, including the Himalayas and Taiwan, across into Alaska, Canada, and the United States, and as far south as Saudi Arabia and Oman. The adult butterfly typically has yellow wings with black vein markings, and a wingspan of 65–86 millimetres (2.6–3.4 in). The hindwing has a pair of protruding tails, similar to that of a swallow, and just below each tail is one red and six blue eyespots. In the caterpillar stage, P. machaon has a length of 45 millimetres (1.8 in) and resembles a bird dropping, giving it camouflage.Photograph: Zeynel Cebeci