small tortoiseshell vs Willow-leaved Cotoneaster

Aglais urticae compared with Cotoneaster salicifolius

Key Differences

• small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened while Willow-leaved Cotoneaster is Not Evaluated.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	small tortoiseshell	Willow-leaved Cotoneaster
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Rosales (Roses & Allies)
Family	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)	Rosaceae (Rose Family)
Genus	Aglais	Cotoneaster
Species	Aglais urticae	Cotoneaster salicifolius

Conservation Status

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Willow-leaved Cotoneaster

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	small tortoiseshell	Willow-leaved Cotoneaster
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.

Willow-leaved Cotoneaster

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (South Africa), Asia (Turkey), Europe (10 countries), North America (Canada, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia), and South America (Uruguay).

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 10 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇫🇷 France 🇮🇪 Ireland 🇮🇹 Italy 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇨🇭 Switzerland 🇬🇧 United Kingdom