Sickener vs small tortoiseshell

Russula emetica compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Sickener is Least Concern while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Sickener	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Basidiomycota (Club Fungi)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Agaricomycetes (Mushrooms)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Russulales (Russulales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Russulaceae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Russula	Aglais
Species	Russula emetica	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Sickener

LC — Least Concern

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Sickener	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Sickener

Habitat

Typically found in forest floors, decomposing wood, and soil ecosystems.

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