Branched Pixie-Cup Lichen vs small tortoiseshell

Cladonia ramulosa compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Branched Pixie-Cup Lichen is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Branched Pixie-Cup Lichen	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Lecanoromycetes (Lecanoromycetes)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Lecanorales (Lecanorales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Cladoniaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Cladonia	Aglais
Species	Cladonia ramulosa	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Branched Pixie-Cup Lichen

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Branched Pixie-Cup Lichen	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Branched Pixie-Cup Lichen

Habitat

Native to Asia and Europe and North America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (4 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Brazil, Colombia).

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.

Branched Pixie-Cup Lichen

The Branched pixie-cup lichen (Cladonia ramulosa) is a species in the genus Cladonia. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Native to Asia and Europe and North America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

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 4 countries:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇸🇪 Sweden