Mountain Argus vs small tortoiseshell

Aricia montensis compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Mountain Argus is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Mountain Argus	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Insecta (Insects)	Insecta (Insects)
Order same	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Lycaenidae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Aricia	Aglais
Species	Aricia montensis	Aglais urticae

Evolutionary Relationship

Mountain Argus and small tortoiseshell share a common ancestor at the Order level: Lepidoptera. (Butterflies & Moths)

Conservation Status

Mountain Argus

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Mountain Argus	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Mountain Argus

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Andorra, Portugal, and Spain.

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 3 countries:

🇦🇩 Andorra 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇪🇸 Spain