Brassy Willow Beetle vs small tortoiseshell

Phratora vitellinae compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Brassy Willow Beetle is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Brassy Willow Beetle	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Insecta (Insects)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Coleoptera (Beetles)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Chrysomelidae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Phratora	Aglais
Species	Phratora vitellinae	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

Brassy Willow Beetle and small tortoiseshell share a common ancestor at the Class level: Insecta. (Insects)

Conservation Status

Brassy Willow Beetle

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Brassy Willow Beetle	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Brassy Willow Beetle

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden.

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.

Brassy Willow Beetle

The Brassy Willow Beetle (Phratora vitellinae) is a species in the genus Phratora. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

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 5 countries:

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