Samoan swallowtail, life history, specimen fate, 2013-2014
Description
Surveys for immature life stages of Papilio godeffroyi were conducted on 117 individually marked host trees (Micromelum minutum) in eight forest stands on Tutuila Island, American Samoa, at approximately monthly intervals during 2013-2014. The eight stands were mostly in or adjacent to the National Park of American Samoa (NPSA), but one site was sampled near the western tip of Tutuila, outside NPSA. Papilio life stages included eggs, eggshells, larvae, pupae, and exuviae, which were taken to the laboratory at American Samoa Community College for examination and processing. Specimens were reared (live specimens) or assessed (dead or inert specimens) to determine their reproductive outcome and rates of parasitism. Live eggs, larvae, and pupae were maintained in environmental chambers with fresh host plant foliage, and dead eggs were dissected to determine whether a Papilio embryo or parasitoid wasps were present. Eggshells were examined for signs that a Papilio larvae or parasitoid wasps had emerged. This metadata includes records for the end developmental stage for each reared specimen was recorded. These data can be used with other reproductive data available in this data release and with host plant and habitat data (https://doi.org/10.5066/P9A6CXQX), to evaluate variation in reproductive parameters relative to seasonality and physical differences between individual host trees and host tree stands.