danewort, dwarf elder vs small tortoiseshell

Sambucus ebulus compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• danewort, dwarf elder is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	danewort, dwarf elder	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Dipsacales (Dipsacales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Viburnaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Sambucus	Aglais
Species	Sambucus ebulus	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

danewort, dwarf elder

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	danewort, dwarf elder	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

danewort, dwarf elder

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Israel), Europe (15 countries), and North America (Canada, 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.

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 15 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇧🇬 Bulgaria 🇨🇿 Czech Republic 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇪🇪 Estonia 🇫🇮 Finland 🇫🇷 France 🇮🇪 Ireland 🇱🇹 Lithuania 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇪🇸 Spain 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇬🇧 United Kingdom