Agrimony vs Common Yew

Agrimonia eupatoria compared with Taxus baccata

Key Differences

• Agrimony is Near Threatened while Common Yew is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Agrimony	Common Yew
Kingdom same	Plantae (Plants)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Coniferophyta (Conifers)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Pinopsida (Conifers)
Order	Rosales (Roses & Allies)	Pinales (Pines & Allies)
Family	Rosaceae (Rose Family)	Taxaceae
Genus	Agrimonia	Taxus
Species	Agrimonia eupatoria	Taxus baccata

Evolutionary Relationship

Agrimony and Common Yew share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Plantae. (Plants)

Conservation Status

Agrimony

NT — Near Threatened

Common Yew

VU — Vulnerable

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Agrimony	Common Yew
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Agrimony

Habitat

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

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (6 countries), North America (Canada, United States), and Oceania and the Pacific (Australia). Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Common Yew

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, tundra, and tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, among 6 distinct biome types spanning the Australasia and Oceanian and Palearctic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Libya), Europe (10 countries), North America (United States), Oceania and the Pacific (New Zealand), and South America (Brazil). Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Agrimony

The Agrimony (Agrimonia eupatoria) is a species in the genus Agrimonia. It is currently classified as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Common Yew

<em>Taxus baccata</em>, the common yew or English yew, is a slow-growing evergreen conifer in the family Taxaceae, native to western, central, and southern Europe, northwest Africa, and southwest Asia. It is one of the longest-lived trees in the Northern Hemisphere, with some individuals estimated to be several thousand years old. The species grows in a variety of habitats including mixed deciduous woodland, calcareous scrub, chalk downlands, and rocky slopes, often as an understorey or emergent tree. Yews are dioecious; female trees produce distinctive bright red fleshy arils surrounding a single hard seed, the only non-toxic part of the plant. All other parts, including the leaves, bark, and seeds, contain highly toxic taxine alkaloids that are dangerous to humans and most animals. Average lifespan can exceed 1,000 years under suitable conditions. <em>Taxus baccata</em> is ecologically important as dense, long-lived woodland habitat and as food for birds that disperse its seeds. Medicinally, taxol derived from yew bark is used in cancer treatment. The species is assessed as Vulnerable due to habitat degradation, overgrazing, and historic overexploitation across parts of its native range, though it remains locally common.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 7 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇫🇮 Finland 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇺🇸 United States