bulbous foxtail vs small tortoiseshell

Alopecurus bulbosus compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• bulbous foxtail is Extinct while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	bulbous foxtail	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Liliopsida (Monocots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Poales (Grasses)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Poaceae (Grass Family)	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Alopecurus	Aglais
Species	Alopecurus bulbosus	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

bulbous foxtail

EX — Extinct

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	bulbous foxtail	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

bulbous foxtail

Habitat

Typically found in grasslands, wetlands, forests, and cultivated landscapes.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, 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.

bulbous foxtail

The Bulbous Foxtail (Alopecurus bulbosus) is a species in the genus Alopecurus. It is currently classified as Extinct on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in grasslands, wetlands, forests, and cultivated landscapes.

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 3 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇸🇪 Sweden