Cackling Goose vs small tortoiseshell

Branta hutchinsii compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Cackling Goose is Not Evaluated while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Cackling Goose	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Aves (Birds)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Anseriformes (Anseriformes)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Anatidae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Branta	Aglais
Species	Branta hutchinsii	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

Cackling Goose and small tortoiseshell share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

Cackling Goose

NE — Not Evaluated

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Cackling Goose	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Cackling Goose

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (8 countries), and North America (United States).

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.

Cackling Goose

Cackling Goose (Branta hutchinsii) is classified as Not Evaluated (NE) on the IUCN Red List. Not yet evaluated against IUCN Red List criteria. Conservation status remains to be determined.

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 8 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇫🇷 France 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇱 Poland 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇬🇧 United Kingdom