Alder Spittlebug vs Northern Emerald

Aphrophora alni compared with Somatochlora arctica

Key Differences

• Alder Spittlebug is Least Concern while Northern Emerald is Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Alder Spittlebug	Northern Emerald
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Insecta (Insects)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Hemiptera (Hemiptera)	Odonata (Odonata)
Family	Aphrophoridae	Corduliidae
Genus	Aphrophora	Somatochlora
Species	Aphrophora alni	Somatochlora arctica

Evolutionary Relationship

Alder Spittlebug and Northern Emerald share a common ancestor at the Class level: Insecta. (Insects)

Conservation Status

Alder Spittlebug

LC — Least Concern

Northern Emerald

EN — Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Alder Spittlebug	Northern Emerald
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Alder Spittlebug

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Found across Europe (5 countries) and North America (United States).

Northern Emerald

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Ukraine. Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Alder Spittlebug

The Alder Spittlebug (Aphrophora alni) is a species in the genus Aphrophora. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Northern Emerald

Northern Emerald (Somatochlora arctica) is classified as Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List. At high risk of extinction in the wild, with significant population decline and ongoing threats to survival.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden