Swallowtail Farms was established in 1991, long before the recent craze of live butterfly releases. Therefore, we have come to be known as "The Original Butterfly Company." We have always been committed to the highest quality products and customer service, setting standards for excellence in the industry. To learn more about us, please scroll down to see some of our accomplishments.
	Our Greatest Accomplishment ... .. three boxes full of thank you notes, pictures, and letters from our many satisfied customers. In our 13 year history of providing butterflies for over 8,000 weddings, memorials, and special events, many of those customers were so pleased that they sent us unsolicited correspondences showing how much they enjoyed the butterflies at their events. We keep and cherish each one. This is our greatest joy and we will do everything possible to ensure that they keep coming. If you are a customer of Swallowtail Farms and would like to add your comments, please send us an email. We'd like to hear from you.
	Ranked 9th Fastest Growing Company in 2001
In September of 2001, Swallowtail Farms, Inc. was chosen to be 9th out of a long list of nominations as one of the top 100 fastest growing companies in Northern California by the Sacramento Business Journal. If it weren't for our customers, we wouldn't have ever dreamed of such an honor. Thank you to all of our customers who trusted us to be an important part of their special day.
	Helped Build Largest Monarch Butterfly Farm on the West Coast In 1997, we embarked on the long process of building one of the largest monarch butterfly farms on the West Coast. Now under new ownership, this multi-acre farm has produced hundreds of thousands of large and vibrantly colored monarch butterflies for weddings, memorials, and butterfly houses. Please click HERE to see some pictures of the farm.
	Developed the First Commercially Used Disease Treatment for Monarch Butterflies The disease Ophryocystis elektroscirrha (commonly called Oe), is a protozoa parasite that has plagued monarch growers for years. The breeders at Swallowtail Farms, Inc. believed that our success in production depended on our ability to grow healthy and disease free livestock. So, our researchers began in the search for a way to treat and eliminate the Oe protozoa. After almost a year of research and with the help of Dr. Kingston Leong (Department of Entomology, Cal Poly), Swallowtail Farms, Inc. developed the first commercially successful treatment to kill and eliminate the Oe spore. This treatment is a combination of lab methodology and protocol in additional to the application of our specially developed treatment liquid formulated to kill protozoa spores without harming the monarch egg. We have been using this treatment successfully since 1998.
	Swallowtail Farms' Butterflies are Certified to be Disease Free Well known and respected UC Davis insect pathologist, Dr. Harry Kaya, inspected a sample of monarch livestock taken from our production. His conclusion was: "Based on my examination of the specimens above and your detailed account of how you rear your monarch butterflies, I believe that you have no detectable insect pathogens in your rearing program. I congratulate you on maintaining a very clean operation." (emphasis added) We were very pleased with this result as we had worked very hard developing a disease control system to ensure that our customers would receive only the healthiest and most beautiful monarch butterflies. Please click on the image to the left to see the full contents of Dr. Kaya's letter to Swallowtail Farms.
Unique and Custom Designed Packaging for Live Butterflies
At Swallowtail Farms, we are blessed with having talented designers who know how to create packaging that will protect and preserve the precious contents of live monarch butterflies while making the package elegant, stylish, and appropriate for the occasion. All of our packaging is custom designed and only found at Swallowtail Farms. Although you may find other breeders who offer monarch butterflies, you will never find our equal in terms of butterfly packaging. We pay close attention to detail all the way down to the shipping box to ensure that the butterflies are well preserved and that our customers will be fully satisfied with their live butterfly release experience.
	Monarch Migration Study In 1998, some local butterfly clubs expressed concern about the release of live monarch butterflies into the environment. Their voiced concern was over the issue of whether or not farm grown monarch butterflies could migrate in the fall along with the wild population. Since we are also very concerned about the well-being of our butterflies after they are released, we invested thousands of dollars and countless hours into studying the issue of whether or not our butterflies would migrate in the fall. We were more than pleased with what we found. For a complete look at our research study, please click HERE.
As Seen On TV Swallowtail Farms has been seen, heard, and read on a number of TV, radio, newspaper, and magazine programs. A short, but not comprehensive, list can be seen below:
Wall Street Journal New York Times Dallas Morning News Fort Worth Star Telegram Sacramento Business Journal Sacramento Magazine	National Public Radio (NPR) Public Radio International (PRI) KCRA Television KXTV Television KMAX Television The California Heartland Show
Educational and Charitable Projects Swallowtail Farms has been involved in numerous projects to help educate kids about butterflies and the environment. We have also been a part of numerous programs to donate butterflies for the purpose of raising money for charitable organizations. Here are a few of these events:
California Projects Monarch Migration Study California Tag & Release Project Texas Projects Mabank, Texas, Central Elementary School Grapevine, Texas Butterfly Flutter-By Wings of Hope Project: The Crane and the Butterfly Fairfield, Texas Elementary Tag & Release Project