Running mountaingrass vs small tortoiseshell

Oplismenus compositus compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Running mountaingrass is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Running mountaingrass	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Liliopsida (Monocots)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Poales (Grasses)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Poaceae (Grass Family)	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Oplismenus	Aglais
Species	Oplismenus compositus	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Running mountaingrass

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Running mountaingrass	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Running mountaingrass

Habitat

Typically found in grasslands, wetlands, forests, and cultivated landscapes.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Indonesia, Taiwan), Europe (France, United Kingdom), North America (Guatemala, Honduras, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (9 countries), and South America (Colombia).

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 2 countries:

🇫🇷 France 🇬🇧 United Kingdom