Boreal Bedstraw vs small tortoiseshell

Galium boreale compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Boreal Bedstraw is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Boreal Bedstraw	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Gentianales (Gentianales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Rubiaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Galium	Aglais
Species	Galium boreale	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Boreal Bedstraw

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Boreal Bedstraw	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Boreal Bedstraw

Habitat

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

Range

Found across Europe (6 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.

Boreal Bedstraw

The Boreal Bedstraw (Galium boreale) is a species in the genus Galium. 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 6 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇫🇮 Finland 🇮🇸 Iceland 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden