field forklet moss vs small tortoiseshell

Dicranella staphylina compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• field forklet moss is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	field forklet moss	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Bryophyta	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Bryopsida (Bryopsida)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Dicranales (Dicranales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Dicranellaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Dicranella	Aglais
Species	Dicranella staphylina	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

field forklet moss

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	field forklet moss	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

field forklet moss

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, 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 🇱🇺 Luxembourg 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden