Arched Earthstar vs Blackthorn Mining Bee

Geastrum fornicatum compared with Andrena varians

Key Differences

Arched Earthstar is Critically Endangered while Blackthorn Mining Bee is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Arched Earthstar	Blackthorn Mining Bee
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Basidiomycota (Club Fungi)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Agaricomycetes (Mushrooms)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Geastrales (Geastrales)	Hymenoptera (Ants, Bees & Wasps)
Family	Geastraceae	Andrenidae
Genus	Geastrum	Andrena
Species	Geastrum fornicatum	Andrena varians

Conservation Status

Arched Earthstar

CR — Critically Endangered

Blackthorn Mining Bee

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Arched Earthstar	Blackthorn Mining Bee
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Arched Earthstar

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 6 distinct biome types spanning the Neotropic and Palearctic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (4 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Brazil). Currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Blackthorn Mining Bee

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, and Sweden.

Arched Earthstar

The Arched Earthstar (Geastrum fornicatum) is a species in the genus Geastrum. It is currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 6 distinct biome types spanning the.

Blackthorn Mining Bee

The Blackthorn Mining Bee (Andrena varians) is a species in the genus Andrena. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Distributed across Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, and Sweden.