small tortoiseshell vs Window Gnat

Aglais urticae compared with Sylvicola fenestralis

Key Differences

• small tortoiseshell is Near Threatened while Window Gnat is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	small tortoiseshell	Window Gnat
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Insecta (Insects)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Diptera (Diptera)
Family	Nymphalidae (Brush-footed Butterflies)	Anisopodidae
Genus	Aglais	Sylvicola
Species	Aglais urticae	Sylvicola fenestralis

Evolutionary Relationship

small tortoiseshell and Window Gnat share a common ancestor at the Class level: Insecta. (Insects)

Conservation Status

small tortoiseshell

NT — Near Threatened

Window Gnat

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	small tortoiseshell	Window Gnat
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.

Window Gnat

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Norway, 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 3 countries:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden