small tortoiseshell vs white earwort

Aglais urticae compared with Diplophyllum albicans

Key Differences

• small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened while white earwort is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	small tortoiseshell	white earwort
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Marchantiophyta (liverwort)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Jungermanniopsida (Jungermanniopsida)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Jungermanniales (Jungermanniales)
Family	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)	Scapaniaceae
Genus	Aglais	Diplophyllum
Species	Aglais urticae	Diplophyllum albicans

Conservation Status

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

white earwort

VU — Vulnerable

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	small tortoiseshell	white earwort
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.

white earwort

Habitat

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

Range

Found across Asia (Taiwan) and Europe (6 countries). Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

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 6 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇱🇺 Luxembourg 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇸🇪 Sweden