Bank Vole vs Clearweed

Myodes glareolus compared with Pilea fontana

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Bank Vole	Clearweed
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Rodentia (Rodents)	Rosales (Roses & Allies)
Family	Cricetidae	Urticaceae
Genus	Myodes	Pilea
Species	Myodes glareolus	Pilea fontana

Conservation Status

Bank Vole

LC — Least Concern

Clearweed

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Bank Vole	Clearweed
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Bank Vole

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Found across Europe (5 countries) and North America (Canada).

Clearweed

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Distributed across Canada and United States.

Bank Vole

Bank Vole (Myodes glareolus) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

Clearweed

Clearweed, Pilea pumila, is a small, annual herb in the family Urticaceae native to moist, shaded habitats across eastern North America and eastern Asia, including the eastern United States, Canada, eastern China, Japan, and Korea. The species grows in dense colonies in wet woodland, stream banks, floodplain forests, and moist disturbed ground, often forming carpets on rich, moist mineral soils in deeply shaded forest understories. The common name refers to the translucent, watery stems and smooth, bright green leaves, which give the plant an almost glassy appearance. Like its relative stinging nettle, Clearweed is a member of the nettle family but lacks the stinging hairs, making it harmless to touch. The leaves are opposite, broadly ovate with toothed margins, and the plants bear inconspicuous tiny greenish flowers that are wind-pollinated, releasing pollen in small explosive bursts. Clearweed provides food for a variety of insects and invertebrates in moist forest understory communities. The species is not considered threatened and is common across its native range, thriving in the disturbed, humid conditions found along stream margins and in second-growth forest habitats. It is occasionally weedy in gardens and greenhouses.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 1 countries:

🇨🇦 Canada