Black Mullein vs small tortoiseshell

Verbascum nigrum compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

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

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Black Mullein	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Lamiales (Lamiales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Scrophulariaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Verbascum	Aglais
Species	Verbascum nigrum	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Black Mullein

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

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

Habitat & Geographic Range

Black Mullein

Habitat

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

Range

Found across Europe (7 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 Mullein

The Black Mullein (Verbascum nigrum) is a species in the genus Verbascum. 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.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 7 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇫🇮 Finland 🇮🇪 Ireland 🇳🇴 Norway 🇷🇺 Russia 🇸🇪 Sweden