Pine Needle Split vs small tortoiseshell

Lophodermium pinastri compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Pine Needle Split is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Pine Needle Split	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Leotiomycetes (Leotiomycetes)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Rhytismatales (Rhytismatales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Rhytismataceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Lophodermium	Aglais
Species	Lophodermium pinastri	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Pine Needle Split

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Pine Needle Split	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Pine Needle Split

Habitat

Native to Asia and Europe and North America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (5 countries), and North America (United States).

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 5 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇸🇪 Sweden