Brown Flat-body vs European otter

Depressaria badiella compared with Lutra lutra

Key Differences

• Brown Flat-body is Least Concern while European otter is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Brown Flat-body	European otter
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Carnivora (Carnivorans)
Family	Depressariidae	Mustelidae (Weasels & Otters)
Genus	Depressaria	Lutra (Otters)
Species	Depressaria badiella	Lutra lutra

Evolutionary Relationship

Brown Flat-body and European otter share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

Brown Flat-body

LC — Least Concern

European otter

VU — Vulnerable

Trend: Stable →

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Brown Flat-body	European otter
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	10 years
Average Length	—	1.0 m
Average Weight	—	10.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Brown Flat-body

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

European otter

Habitat

Typically found in diverse ecosystems where prey species are available.

Range

Found across Europe (6 countries). Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Brown Flat-body

The Brown Flat-body (Depressaria badiella) is a species in the genus Depressaria. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

European otter

Sleek semi-aquatic mustelid found along clean rivers, streams, and coastlines across Europe and Asia. European otters can reach 1.3 meters in length and are highly skilled fish hunters, using sensitive whiskers to detect prey movements. Requiring unpolluted water with abundant fish, they are an indicator species for freshwater ecosystem health. Once nearly extinct in Western Europe from hunting and pollution, populations have recovered significantly following water quality improvements.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

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