Downy Truffle vs small tortoiseshell

Tuber puberulum compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Downy Truffle is Data Deficient while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Downy Truffle	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Pezizomycetes (Pezizomycetes)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Pezizales (Pezizales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Tuberaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Tuber	Aglais
Species	Tuber puberulum	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Downy Truffle

DD — Data Deficient

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Downy Truffle	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Downy Truffle

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, 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.

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 5 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇸🇪 Sweden