Barking Owl vs small tortoiseshell

Ninox connivens compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Barking Owl is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Barking Owl	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Aves (Birds)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Strigiformes (Owls)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Strigidae (True Owls)	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Ninox	Aglais
Species	Ninox connivens	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

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

Conservation Status

Barking Owl

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Barking Owl	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Barking Owl

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, France, Netherlands, Norway, and United Kingdom.

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.

Barking Owl

Barking Owl (Ninox connivens) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

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 5 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇫🇷 France 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇴 Norway 🇬🇧 United Kingdom