Ashy Button vs small tortoiseshell

Acleris sparsana compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Ashy Button is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Ashy Button	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Insecta (Insects)	Insecta (Insects)
Order same	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Tortricidae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Acleris	Aglais
Species	Acleris sparsana	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

Ashy Button and small tortoiseshell share a common ancestor at the Order level: Lepidoptera. (Butterflies & Moths)

Conservation Status

Ashy Button

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Ashy Button	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Ashy Button

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

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.

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.

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:

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