American mink vs small tortoiseshell

Mustela vison compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• American mink is Not Evaluated while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	American mink	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Carnivora (Carnivorans)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Mustelidae (Weasels & Otters)	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Mustela	Aglais
Species	Mustela vison	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

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

Conservation Status

American mink

NE — Not Evaluated

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	American mink	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

American mink

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including temperate coniferous forests, montane grasslands and shrublands, and deserts and xeric shrublands within the Palearctic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Mongolia), Europe (9 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Chile, Ecuador).

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.

American mink

The American mink (Mustela vison) is a species in the genus Mustela. Found across multiple habitat types including temperate coniferous forests, montane grasslands and shrublands, and deserts and xeric shrublands within the Palearctic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland en.

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 9 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇪🇪 Estonia 🇫🇮 Finland 🇫🇷 France 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇬🇧 United Kingdom