arctic rustwort vs Coastal Flat-body

Marsupella arctica compared with Agonopterix yeatiana

Key Differences

arctic rustwort is Critically Endangered while Coastal Flat-body is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	arctic rustwort	Coastal Flat-body
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Marchantiophyta (liverwort)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Jungermanniopsida (Jungermanniopsida)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Jungermanniales (Jungermanniales)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Gymnomitriaceae	Depressariidae
Genus	Marsupella	Agonopterix
Species	Marsupella arctica	Agonopterix yeatiana

Conservation Status

arctic rustwort

CR — Critically Endangered

Coastal Flat-body

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	arctic rustwort	Coastal Flat-body
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

arctic rustwort

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

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

Coastal Flat-body

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

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

arctic rustwort

The Arctic rustwort (Marsupella arctica) is a species in the genus Marsupella. It is currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Coastal Flat-body

Agonopterix yeatiana, the coastal flat-body, is a small moth in the family Depressariidae native to coastal and calcareous grassland habitats across western and northern Europe, with records from Belgium, Denmark, and Sweden. Moths in the family Depressariidae, commonly called flat-body moths due to the depressed posture they adopt when resting with wings held flat against the surface, are associated predominantly with umbellifer plants of the family Apiaceae as larval hosts. Agonopterix yeatiana larvae feed on wild carrot (Daucus carota), wild parsnip (Pastinaca sativa), and related coastal and grassland Apiaceae species, inhabiting the open, often calcareous or sandy habitats where these plants grow. Adult moths have greyish-brown forewing with a distinctive pattern of spots and dashes and reach approximately 8–12 millimeters in wingspan. The species is classified as Near Threatened by the IUCN, reflecting declines associated with the loss of traditional hay meadow management, coastal grassland degradation, and scrub encroachment that eliminates the open, flower-rich grassland habitats supporting its host plants. Agricultural intensification has reduced wild umbellifer populations significantly across lowland Europe, reducing food resources for larvae of specialist moths like A. yeatiana.