small tortoiseshell vs Smooth Shadow Lichen

Aglais urticae compared with Phaeophyscia ciliata

Key Differences

• small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened while Smooth Shadow Lichen is Data Deficient.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	small tortoiseshell	Smooth Shadow Lichen
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Lecanoromycetes (Lecanoromycetes)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Caliciales (Caliciales)
Family	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)	Physciaceae
Genus	Aglais	Phaeophyscia
Species	Aglais urticae	Phaeophyscia ciliata

Conservation Status

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Smooth Shadow Lichen

DD — Data Deficient

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	small tortoiseshell	Smooth Shadow Lichen
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic 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.

Smooth Shadow Lichen

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, and United States.

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 4 countries:

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