Asiatic elephant vs

Elephas maximus compared with Comatricha tenerrima

Key Differences

• Asiatic elephant is Endangered while is Not Evaluated.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Asiatic elephant
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Protozoa (protozoa)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Mycetozoa
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Myxomycetes (Myxomycetes)
Order	Proboscidea (Elephants)	Stemonitidales
Family	Elephantidae (Elephants)	Stemonitidaceae
Genus	Elephas (Asian Elephants)	Comatricha
Species	Elephas maximus	Comatricha tenerrima

Conservation Status

Asiatic elephant

EN — Endangered

Population: ~50.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Asiatic elephant
Diet	Herbivore	—
Average Lifespan	60 years	—
Average Length	5.5 m	—
Average Weight	4.0 t	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Asiatic elephant

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 9 distinct biome types spanning the Australasia and Indomalayan and Palearctic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Distributed across India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Habitat

Native to Asia and Europe and South America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (4 countries), and South America (Brazil).

Asiatic elephant

Smaller than its African cousin, Asiatic elephants range across South and Southeast Asian forests and grasslands from India to Indonesia. Distinguished by their smaller ears, rounded back, and a single finger-like projection on the trunk tip. Deeply interwoven with Asian cultures, they have been used in religious ceremonies and as working animals for millennia. Endangered, with fewer than 50,000 remaining in the wild.

<em>Comatricha tenerrima</em> is a myxomycete belonging to the genus <em>Comatricha</em>, class Myxomycetes, order Stemonitidales. The species epithet tenerrima, meaning very delicate, likely refers to the particularly fine structure of its capillitium or sporangial walls. Like other members of the genus, <em>C. tenerrima</em> inhabits moist, decaying substrates such as rotting wood and leaf litter in forest environments, where the plasmodial feeding stage actively moves across surfaces to consume bacteria, yeasts, and organic particles. The transition to the reproductive stage results in the formation of stalked sporangia releasing spores for aerial dispersal. No geographic range information is provided in the current record. The species does not possess conventional biological traits such as body size or mass, and no quantitative data are available. <em>C. tenerrima</em> has not been assessed on the IUCN Red List.