Slender Stonewort vs small tortoiseshell

Nitella gracilis compared with Aglais urticae

Key Differences

• Slender Stonewort is Vulnerable while small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Slender Stonewort	small tortoiseshell
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Charophyta (Charophyta)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Charophyceae (Charophyceae)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Charales (Charales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Characeae	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)
Genus	Nitella	Aglais
Species	Nitella gracilis	Aglais urticae

Conservation Status

Slender Stonewort

VU — Vulnerable

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Slender Stonewort	small tortoiseshell
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Slender Stonewort

Habitat

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

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (Denmark, Norway, Sweden), North America (United States), and South America (Brazil). Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

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:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden