Common Cuckoo vs small tortoiseshell

Cuculus canorus compared with Aglais urticae

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Cuckoo	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Aves (Birds)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Cuculiformes (Cuculiformes)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Cuculidae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Cuculus	Aglais
Species	Cuculus canorus	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

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

Conservation Status

Common Cuckoo

NT — Near Threatened

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Cuckoo	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common Cuckoo

Habitat

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

Range

Found across Europe (6 countries). Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

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.

Common Cuckoo

Common Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) 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.

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 6 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇱🇺 Luxembourg 🇳🇴 Norway 🇷🇺 Russia 🇸🇪 Sweden