The American Apollo, Parnassius clodius, is one of the three papilionid species in the Parnassiinae subfamily that are found in North America (the others are P. eversmanni and P. pheobus). Parnassiinae contains about 50 species, the rest of which live in Eurasia. Like the other North American parnassiines, P. clodius inhabits forests in Western North America. It is found along the coast from Northern British Columbia through mid-California, and across Washington, Oregon, Idaho and parts of Montana, Wyoming and Utah. Adults are morphologically variable in different locations. Larvae eat herbaceous Fumariaceae that contain alkaloids, it is thought that larvae and adults are poisonous to predators. Larvae also have cryptically coloration (at low altitudes) or mimic toxic millipedes (higher altitudes). Most populations have one generation per year although in high altitudes generations may take two years (biennial), and overwinter in late larval stage as well as at egg stage. The fluttery white adults fly slowly and do not migrate; their forewings are endowed with hooks thought to help with emerging from their thin but strong silk cocoon after pupation (Scott, 1986).