Alfken's Mini-miner vs Common Lime

Andrena alfkenella compared with Tilia europaea

Key Differences

• Alfken's Mini-miner is Near Threatened while Common Lime is Not Evaluated.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Alfken's Mini-miner	Common Lime
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Hymenoptera (Ants, Bees & Wasps)	Malvales (Malvales)
Family	Andrenidae	Malvaceae
Genus	Andrena	Tilia
Species	Andrena alfkenella	Tilia europaea

Conservation Status

Alfken's Mini-miner

NT — Near Threatened

Common Lime

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Alfken's Mini-miner	Common Lime
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Alfken's Mini-miner

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, and Sweden. Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Common Lime

Habitat

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

Range

Found across Europe (4 countries) and North America (Canada, United States).

Alfken's Mini-miner

The Alfken's Mini-miner (Andrena alfkenella) is a species in the genus Andrena. It is currently classified as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Common Lime

<em>Tilia europaea</em>, the common lime or European linden, is a large deciduous tree in the family Malvaceae, occurring naturally as a hybrid between <em>Tilia cordata</em> and <em>Tilia platyphyllos</em>. It is widely distributed across Europe and has been introduced to North America, where it is commonly planted as a street and park tree. The common lime typically grows in temperate broadleaf forests and urban environments, reaching considerable heights and living for several centuries. It produces fragrant, pale yellow flowers in summer that are highly attractive to bees and other pollinators, earning it a prominent role in honey production. The species has not been assessed for the IUCN Red List. Its wood is valued for carving and musical instrument manufacture, while its flowers and leaves have traditional uses in herbal medicine. Common lime is particularly notable for producing abundant basal sprouts and epicormic shoots, a characteristic that makes it useful for coppicing and pollarding in traditional land management practices across Europe and North America.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 3 countries:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden