Bitter-Ash vs small tortoiseshell

Euonymus atropurpureus compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Bitter-Ash is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Bitter-Ash	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Celastrales (Celastrales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Celastraceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Euonymus	Aglais
Species	Euonymus atropurpureus	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Bitter-Ash

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Bitter-Ash	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Bitter-Ash

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Distributed across Canada and United States.

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.

Bitter-Ash

The Bitter-Ash (Euonymus atropurpureus) is a species in the genus Euonymus. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

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.