Moth Mullein vs small tortoiseshell

Verbascum blattaria compared with Aglais urticae

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Moth Mullein	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Lamiales (Lamiales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Scrophulariaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Verbascum	Aglais
Species	Verbascum blattaria	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Moth Mullein

NT — Near Threatened

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Moth Mullein	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Moth Mullein

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Japan), Europe (11 countries), North America (Canada, United States), and Oceania and the Pacific (Australia). Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

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 11 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇫🇷 France 🇮🇪 Ireland 🇱🇻 Latvia 🇱🇹 Lithuania 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇴 Norway 🇷🇺 Russia 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇬🇧 United Kingdom