Black Elder vs small tortoiseshell

Sambucus nigra compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Black Elder is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Black Elder	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Dipsacales (Dipsacales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Viburnaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Sambucus	Aglais
Species	Sambucus nigra	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Black Elder

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Black Elder	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Black Elder

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, and montane grasslands and shrublands, among 10 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (11 countries), Asia (6 countries), Europe (15 countries), North America (Canada, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (4 countries), and South America (5 countries).

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.

Black Elder

The Black Elder (Sambucus nigra) is a species in the genus Sambucus. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, and montane grasslands and shrublands, among 10 distinct biome types. Populations are also fou. Widely distributed across Africa (11 countries), Asia (6 countries), Europe (15 countries), North America (Canada, Unite...

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 15 countries:

🇧🇾 Belarus 🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇪🇪 Estonia 🇫🇮 Finland 🇬🇷 Greece 🇮🇸 Iceland 🇱🇻 Latvia 🇱🇹 Lithuania 🇲🇹 Malta 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇷🇺 Russia 🇪🇸 Spain 🇸🇪 Sweden