Alpine marmot vs small tortoiseshell

Marmota marmota compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Alpine marmot is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Alpine marmot	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Rodentia (Rodents)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Sciuridae (Squirrels)	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Marmota	Aglais
Species	Marmota marmota	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

Alpine marmot and small tortoiseshell share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

Alpine marmot

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Alpine marmot	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Alpine marmot

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Distributed across Andorra, Czech Republic, Italy, and Spain.

small tortoiseshell

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Found across Europe (41 countries). Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Alpine marmot

The Alpine marmot (Marmota marmota) is a species in the genus Marmota. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Distributed across Andorra, Czech Republic, Italy, and Spain.

small tortoiseshell

small tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae) is classified as Near Threatened (NT) on the IUCN Red List. Close to qualifying as threatened, with populations that may become vulnerable without conservation action.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

🇦🇩 Andorra 🇨🇿 Czech Republic 🇮🇹 Italy 🇪🇸 Spain