Banded Pill-Beetle vs small tortoiseshell

Byrrhus fasciatus compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Banded Pill-Beetle is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Banded Pill-Beetle	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Insecta (Insects)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Coleoptera (Beetles)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Byrrhidae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Byrrhus	Aglais
Species	Byrrhus fasciatus	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

Banded Pill-Beetle and small tortoiseshell share a common ancestor at the Class level: Insecta. (Insects)

Conservation Status

Banded Pill-Beetle

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Banded Pill-Beetle	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Banded Pill-Beetle

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.

Banded Pill-Beetle

The Banded Pill-Beetle (Byrrhus fasciatus) is a species in the genus Byrrhus. It is currently classified 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