African elephant vs

Loxodonta africana compared with Biscogniauxia repanda

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	African elephant
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Sordariomycetes (Sordariomycetes)
Order	Proboscidea (Elephants)	Xylariales (Xylariales)
Family	Elephantidae (Elephants)	Graphostromataceae
Genus	Loxodonta (African Elephants)	Biscogniauxia
Species	Loxodonta africana	Biscogniauxia repanda

Conservation Status

African elephant

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~415.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

VU — Vulnerable

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	African elephant
Diet	Herbivore	—
Average Lifespan	65 years	—
Average Length	6.0 m	—
Average Weight	6.0 t	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

African elephant

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, and flooded grasslands and savannas, among 5 distinct biome types within the Afrotropic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Found in Kenya. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Habitat

Native to Europe and North America and South America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Brazil, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and United States. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

African elephant

The largest land animal on Earth, African elephants can reach 7,000 kg and inhabit sub-Saharan savannas, forests, and wetlands. Highly intelligent with complex social structures led by matriarchs, they communicate through infrasound, rumbles, and touch. As ecosystem engineers, they shape habitats by uprooting trees, digging waterholes, and dispersing seeds. Vulnerable, with populations declining due to ivory poaching and habitat loss.

Biscogniauxia repanda is a pyrenomycete fungus producing flat, crust-like stromata with embedded perithecia on dead hardwood bark. It inhabits temperate and Mediterranean forests, growing on dead branches and stems of oak, chestnut, and other hardwood trees. This saprotrophic ascomycete decomposes dead hardwood and colonizes stressed or damaged trees.