# Small tortoiseshell (*Aglais urticae*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/small-tortoiseshell  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The small tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae) is an insect in the butterflies and moths subgroup, belonging to the family Nymphalidae. It is classified in the order Lepidoptera, superfamily Papilionoidea, subfamily Nymphalinae, tribe Nymphalini and genus Aglais. Its scientific name authority is (Linnaeus, 1758), and it is also called the small tortoiseshell butterfly.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | Not recorded |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Wingspan | 4 cm – 5.75 cm |
| Lifespan | Not recorded |
| Diet | Scavenger |
| Main food | flowers |
| Habitat | forest, grassland, human_modified, shrubland |
| Young per litter or clutch | Not recorded |
| Litters or clutches a year | 2 |
| Reproduction | Eggs |
| Active | By day (diurnal) |
| On the wing | All year |
| Generations a year | Several |
| Larval food plants | Urticaceae family |
| Conservation status | Not recorded |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Arthropoda
- class: Insecta
- order: Lepidoptera
- family: Nymphalidae
- genus: Aglais
- species: *Aglais urticae* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Aglais adumbrata*, *Aglais alba*, *Aglais angustibalteata*, *Aglais atrebatensis*, *Aglais basimilberti*, *Aglais bolandii*, *Aglais brunneoviolacea*, *Aglais caerulapicata*, *Aglais chinensis*, *Aglais clarirufa*, *Aglais connexa*, *Aglais costadivisa*, *Aglais costajuncta*, *Aglais cuneatiguttata*, *Aglais discolor*, *Aglais expansa*, *Aglais fasciata*, *Aglais flavotessellata*, *Aglais fulva*, *Aglais fulvomarginata*, *Aglais griseomarginata*, *Aglais herrmanni*, *Aglais ichnusa*, *Aglais ichnusoides*, *Aglais ignea*, *Aglais implumis*, *Aglais infraradiata*, *Aglais infuscata*, *Aglais ioformis*, *Aglais ioprotoformis*, *Aglais latericolor*, *Aglais latibalteata*, *Aglais lutea*, *Aglais luteomarginata*, *Aglais maculomissa*, *Aglais magniguttata*, *Aglais magnilunulata*, *Aglais magninotata*, *Aglais magnipuncta*, *Aglais nigra*, *Aglais nigricaria*, *Aglais nigricostata*, *Aglais nigridorsata*, *Aglais nigrimarginata*, *Aglais nigrita*, *Aglais nubilata*, *Aglais obscura*, *Aglais ochrea*, *Aglais parviguttata*, *Aglais parvilunulata*, *Aglais parvinotata*, *Aglais parvipuncta*, *Aglais polaris*, *Aglais polychloroides*, *Aglais pseudoichnusa*, *Aglais punctijuncta*, *Aglais pygmaea*, *Aglais radiata*, *Aglais rubrochrea*, *Aglais salmonicolor*, *Aglais strandi*, *Aglais strigata*, *Aglais subtusbrunnescens*, *Aglais subtuslactea*, *Aglais subtusnigrescens*, *Aglais subtusochreabalteata*, *Aglais subtusrufa*, *Aglais subtusvenata*, *Aglais teruelensis*, *Aglais tripuncta*, *Aglais unipuncta*, *Aglais urticae ichnusa*, *Aglais urticae kansuensis*, *Aglais urticae urticae*, *Aglais urticoides*, *Alglais testudinea*, *Nymphalis urticae*, *Papilio ichnusa*, *Papilio urticae*, *Vanessa albapicata*, *Vanessa albidomaculata*, *Vanessa amploides*, *Vanessa bellieri*, *Vanessa bimaculata*, *Vanessa conjuncta*, *Vanessa consentanea*, *Vanessa cruenta*, *Vanessa dannenbergi*, *Vanessa derennei*, *Vanessa elisa*, *Vanessa erythrophaea*, *Vanessa extrema*, *Vanessa falcoides*, *Vanessa fasciata*, *Vanessa fervida*, *Vanessa flavofasciata*, *Vanessa grueti*, *Vanessa guhni*, *Vanessa ichnusa*, *Vanessa igneaformis*, *Vanessa impuncta*, *Vanessa kaiensis*, *Vanessa kansuensis*, *Vanessa kaschmirensis*, *Vanessa leodiensis*, *Vanessa lucia*, *Vanessa lucida*, *Vanessa luna*, *Vanessa lydiae*, *Vanessa mesoides*, *Vanessa monographa*, *Vanessa neurodes*, *Vanessa nixa*, *Vanessa osborni*, *Vanessa pseudoconnexa*, *Vanessa pseudoturcica*, *Vanessa repetita*, *Vanessa rosacea*, *Vanessa selysi*, *Vanessa semiichnusoides*, *Vanessa sordida*, *Vanessa splendens*, *Vanessa subtusornata*, *Vanessa subtuspuncta*, *Vanessa teloides*, *Vanessa thibetana*, *Vanessa transiens*, *Vanessa turica*, *Vanessa urticae*, *Vanessa victori*, *Vanessa xanthodes*, *Vanessa xantholeloena*

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the small tortoiseshell?

The small tortoiseshell is an insect in the butterflies and moths subgroup, classified in the order Lepidoptera.

### What is the scientific name of the small tortoiseshell?

Its scientific name is Aglais urticae, in the genus Aglais.

### What family does the small tortoiseshell belong to?

It belongs to the family Nymphalidae, subfamily Nymphalinae and tribe Nymphalini, within the superfamily Papilionoidea.

### What other names does the small tortoiseshell have?

It is also called the small tortoiseshell butterfly.

## Sources

- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [LepTraits 1.0: a globally comprehensive dataset of butterfly traits](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.19874602.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Shirey, V., Larsen, E., Doherty, A. et al. (2022) LepTraits 1.0: a globally comprehensive dataset of butterfly traits. Scientific Data 9: 382. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-022-01473-5. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.19874602.v1
- [TraitCH: a multi-taxa functional trait dataset for Switzerland and Europe](https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15063844), CC BY 4.0, 2.0. Chauvier, Y., Adde, A., Bergamini, A. et al. (2025) TraitCH: a multi-taxa functional trait dataset for Switzerland and Europe. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15063844
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Small tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/small-tortoiseshell