Alfken's Mini-miner vs Irish Plume

Andrena alfkenella compared with Platyptilia tesseradactyla

Key Differences

• Alfken's Mini-miner is Near Threatened while Irish Plume is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Alfken's Mini-miner	Irish Plume
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Insecta (Insects)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Hymenoptera (Ants, Bees & Wasps)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Andrenidae	Pterophoridae
Genus	Andrena	Platyptilia
Species	Andrena alfkenella	Platyptilia tesseradactyla

Evolutionary Relationship

Alfken's Mini-miner and Irish Plume share a common ancestor at the Class level: Insecta. (Insects)

Conservation Status

Alfken's Mini-miner

NT — Near Threatened

Irish Plume

VU — Vulnerable

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Alfken's Mini-miner	Irish Plume
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.

Irish Plume

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including temperate coniferous forests, temperate grasslands and steppes, and montane grasslands and shrublands, among 5 distinct biome types within the Palearctic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Armenia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia), Europe (23 countries), and North America (Canada, United States). Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

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.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 3 countries:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden