Corn Crake vs small tortoiseshell

Crex crex compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Corn Crake is Critically Endangered while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Corn Crake	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Aves (Birds)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Gruiformes (Gruiformes)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Rallidae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Crex	Aglais
Species	Crex crex	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

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

Conservation Status

Corn Crake

CR — Critically Endangered

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Corn Crake	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Corn Crake

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, temperate coniferous forests, and boreal forests and taiga, among 8 distinct biome types within the Palearctic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

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

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.

Corn Crake

Corn Crake (Crex crex) is classified as Critically Endangered (CR) on the IUCN Red List. Facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild due to severe population decline and habitat loss.

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