Laughing Gull vs small tortoiseshell

Leucophaeus atricilla compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Laughing Gull is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Laughing Gull	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Aves (Birds)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Charadriiformes (Charadriiformes)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Laridae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Leucophaeus	Aglais
Species	Leucophaeus atricilla	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

Laughing Gull and small tortoiseshell share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

Laughing Gull

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Laughing Gull	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Laughing Gull

Habitat

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

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (4 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela).

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.

Laughing Gull

Laughing Gull (Leucophaeus atricilla) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

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