Beautiful Groundling vs small tortoiseshell

Caryocolum marmorea compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Beautiful Groundling is Endangered while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Beautiful Groundling	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	Gelechiidae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Caryocolum	Aglais
Species	Caryocolum marmorea	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

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

Conservation Status

Beautiful Groundling

EN — Endangered

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Beautiful Groundling	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Beautiful Groundling

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

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.

Beautiful Groundling

The Beautiful Groundling (Caryocolum marmorea) is a species in the genus Caryocolum. It is currently classified as Endangered 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