alpine meadow grass vs small tortoiseshell

Poa alpina compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• alpine meadow grass is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	alpine meadow grass	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Liliopsida (Monocots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Poales (Grasses)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Poaceae (Grass Family)	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Poa	Aglais
Species	Poa alpina	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

alpine meadow grass

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	alpine meadow grass	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

alpine meadow grass

Habitat

Typically found in grasslands, wetlands, forests, and cultivated landscapes.

Range

Found across Europe (8 countries).

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 meadow grass

The Alpine meadow grass (Poa alpina) is a species in the genus Poa. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in grasslands, wetlands, forests, and cultivated landscapes. Found across Europe (8 countries).

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 8 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇫🇮 Finland 🇫🇷 France 🇮🇸 Iceland 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇬🇧 United Kingdom