Jerusalem thorn vs small tortoiseshell

Parkinsonia aculeata compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Jerusalem thorn is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Jerusalem thorn	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Fabales (Legumes & Allies)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Fabaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Parkinsonia	Aglais
Species	Parkinsonia aculeata	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Jerusalem thorn

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Jerusalem thorn	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Jerusalem thorn

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 6 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (33 countries), Asia (16 countries), Europe (4 countries), North America (8 countries), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia, Micronesia), and South America (Brazil, Chile, Colombia).

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:

🇬🇷 Greece 🇮🇹 Italy 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇪🇸 Spain