lime prickly-ash vs small tortoiseshell

Zanthoxylum fagara compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• lime prickly-ash is Endangered while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	lime prickly-ash	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Sapindales (Sapindales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Rutaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Zanthoxylum	Aglais
Species	Zanthoxylum fagara	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

lime prickly-ash

EN — Endangered

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	lime prickly-ash	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

lime prickly-ash

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical coniferous forests, among 5 distinct biome types within the Neotropic biogeographic realm.

Range

Distributed across Brazil, Colombia, and Cuba. Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

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.