Fire ant vs small tortoiseshell

Solenopsis geminata compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Fire ant is Not Evaluated while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Fire ant	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Insecta (Insects)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Hymenoptera (Ants, Bees & Wasps)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Formicidae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Solenopsis	Aglais
Species	Solenopsis geminata	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

Fire ant and small tortoiseshell share a common ancestor at the Class level: Insecta. (Insects)

Conservation Status

Fire ant

NE — Not Evaluated

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Fire ant	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Fire ant

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Liberia, Mauritius), Asia (10 countries), Europe (Denmark, Spain, Sweden), North America (9 countries), Oceania and the Pacific (11 countries), and South America (4 countries).

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 3 countries:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇪🇸 Spain 🇸🇪 Sweden