Black hellebore vs small tortoiseshell

Helleborus niger compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Black hellebore is Not Evaluated while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Black hellebore	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Ranunculales (Ranunculales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Ranunculaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Helleborus	Aglais
Species	Helleborus niger	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Black hellebore

NE — Not Evaluated

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

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

Habitat & Geographic Range

Black hellebore

Habitat

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

Range

Found across Europe (8 countries) and North America (Canada, 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.

Black hellebore

The Black hellebore (Helleborus niger) is a species in the genus Helleborus. Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions. Found across Europe (8 countries) and North America (Canada, United States).

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 8 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇨🇿 Czech Republic 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇫🇷 France 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇰 Slovakia 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇺🇦 Ukraine