Brilliant Emerald vs small tortoiseshell

Somatochlora metallica compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Brilliant Emerald is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Brilliant Emerald	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Insecta (Insects)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Odonata (Odonata)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Corduliidae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Somatochlora	Aglais
Species	Somatochlora metallica	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

Brilliant Emerald and small tortoiseshell share a common ancestor at the Class level: Insecta. (Insects)

Conservation Status

Brilliant Emerald

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Brilliant Emerald	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Brilliant Emerald

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Luxembourg, 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.

Brilliant Emerald

Brilliant Emerald (Somatochlora metallica) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

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 🇱🇺 Luxembourg 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden