Eastern Waterleaf vs small tortoiseshell

Hydrophyllum virginianum compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

Eastern Waterleaf is Not Evaluated while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Eastern Waterleaf	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Boraginales (Boraginales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Hydrophyllaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Hydrophyllum	Aglais
Species	Hydrophyllum virginianum	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Eastern Waterleaf

NE — Not Evaluated

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Eastern Waterleaf	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Eastern Waterleaf

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Norway, Sweden, and 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 (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.