Fan-tailed Widowbird vs small tortoiseshell

Euplectes axillaris compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Fan-tailed Widowbird is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Fan-tailed Widowbird	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Aves (Birds)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Passeriformes (Songbirds)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Ploceidae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Euplectes	Aglais
Species	Euplectes axillaris	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

Fan-tailed Widowbird and small tortoiseshell share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

Fan-tailed Widowbird

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Fan-tailed Widowbird	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Fan-tailed Widowbird

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Norway and United Kingdom.

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 2 countries:

🇳🇴 Norway 🇬🇧 United Kingdom