Horse botfly vs small tortoiseshell

Gasterophilus intestinalis compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Horse botfly is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Horse botfly	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Insecta (Insects)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Diptera (Diptera)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Oestridae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Gasterophilus	Aglais
Species	Gasterophilus intestinalis	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

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

Conservation Status

Horse botfly

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Horse botfly	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Horse botfly

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, 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

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 4 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden