Alpine Marsh Violet vs small tortoiseshell

Viola palustris compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Alpine Marsh Violet is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Alpine Marsh Violet	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Malpighiales (Malpighiales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Violaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Viola	Aglais
Species	Viola palustris	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Alpine Marsh Violet

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Alpine Marsh Violet	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Alpine Marsh Violet

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Found across Europe (6 countries) and North America (United States).

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 Marsh Violet

The Alpine Marsh Violet (Viola palustris) is a species in the genus Viola. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions. Found across Europe (6 countries) and North America (United States).

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 6 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇫🇮 Finland 🇮🇸 Iceland 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden