Alpine Pine Vole vs

Microtus multiplex compared with Chrysococcus cystophorus

Key Differences

• Alpine Pine Vole is Least Concern while is Not Evaluated.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Alpine Pine Vole
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Chromista (Chromista)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Ochrophyta (Ochrophyta)
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Chrysophyceae (Chrysophyceae)
Order	Rodentia (Rodents)	Chromulinales (Chromulinales)
Family	Cricetidae	Dinobryaceae
Genus	Microtus	Chrysococcus
Species	Microtus multiplex	Chrysococcus cystophorus

Conservation Status

Alpine Pine Vole

LC — Least Concern

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Alpine Pine Vole
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Alpine Pine Vole

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Norway and Sweden.

Alpine Pine Vole

The Alpine Pine Vole (Microtus multiplex) is a species in the genus Microtus. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Chrysococcus cystophorus is a unicellular freshwater chrysophyte microalga in the genus Chrysococcus, family Chromulinaceae, class Chrysophyceae. The specific epithet cystophorus, meaning cyst-bearing, references this species' relationship with siliceous cyst formation — a shared feature across many chrysophytes that produce species-specific resting stages called stomatocysts or statospores. In chrysophytes, the stomatocyst is a silicified internal cyst with a characteristic plug-sealed pore, and its morphology is often used as an additional taxonomic character in species identification. C. cystophorus inhabits freshwater environments and has been recorded from Norwegian waters along with other Scandinavian localities, fitting the pattern of chrysophyte species diversity documented through freshwater surveys in the region. Chrysococcus cells are enclosed within a lorica — a proteinaceous or organic outer vessel — from which flagella emerge for locomotion. The lorica shape and ornamentation, along with the dimensions and flagellar arrangement, are primary characters used for species identification. Like other chrysophytes, C. cystophorus is golden-brown in color owing to chlorophylls a and c together with fucoxanthin pigments in the chloroplast. Chrysococcus species function as primary producers in freshwater plankton communities, particularly in oligotrophic lakes where smaller algae outcompete larger taxa. C. cystophorus has not been evaluated under IUCN Red List criteria and is listed as Not Evaluated, consistent with the general status of freshwater microalgal taxa.