small tortoiseshell vs Swallow-tailed Bee-eater

Aglais urticae compared with Merops hirundineus

Key Differences

• small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened while Swallow-tailed Bee-eater is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	small tortoiseshell	Swallow-tailed Bee-eater
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Coraciiformes (Coraciiformes)
Family	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)	Meropidae
Genus	Aglais	Merops
Species	Aglais urticae	Merops hirundineus

Evolutionary Relationship

small tortoiseshell and Swallow-tailed Bee-eater share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Swallow-tailed Bee-eater

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	small tortoiseshell	Swallow-tailed Bee-eater
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.

Swallow-tailed Bee-eater

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Found in Norway.

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 1 countries:

🇳🇴 Norway