Ashy Button vs European otter

Acleris sparsana compared with Lutra lutra

Key Differences

• Ashy Button is Least Concern while European otter is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Ashy Button	European otter
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Carnivora (Carnivorans)
Family	Tortricidae	Mustelidae (Weasels & Otters)
Genus	Acleris	Lutra (Otters)
Species	Acleris sparsana	Lutra lutra

Evolutionary Relationship

Ashy Button and European otter share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

Ashy Button

LC — Least Concern

European otter

VU — Vulnerable

Trend: Stable →

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Ashy Button	European otter
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	10 years
Average Length	—	1.0 m
Average Weight	—	10.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Ashy Button

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

European otter

Habitat

Typically found in diverse ecosystems where prey species are available.

Range

Found across Europe (6 countries). Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Ashy Button

Ashy button (Acleris sparsana) is a species in the genus Acleris. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

European otter

Sleek semi-aquatic mustelid found along clean rivers, streams, and coastlines across Europe and Asia. European otters can reach 1.3 meters in length and are highly skilled fish hunters, using sensitive whiskers to detect prey movements. Requiring unpolluted water with abundant fish, they are an indicator species for freshwater ecosystem health. Once nearly extinct in Western Europe from hunting and pollution, populations have recovered significantly following water quality improvements.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden