Beautiful Plume vs

Amblyptilia acanthadactyla compared with Cocconeis disculus

Key Differences

Beautiful Plume is Least Concern while is Not Evaluated.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Beautiful Plume
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Chromista (Chromista)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Ochrophyta (Ochrophyta)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Bacillariophyceae (Bacillariophyceae)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Achnanthales (Achnanthales)
Family	Pterophoridae	Cocconeidaceae
Genus	Amblyptilia	Cocconeis
Species	Amblyptilia acanthadactyla	Cocconeis disculus

Conservation Status

Beautiful Plume

LC — Least Concern

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Beautiful Plume
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Beautiful Plume

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including temperate coniferous forests, montane grasslands and shrublands, and Mediterranean forests and woodlands, among 4 distinct biome types within the Palearctic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Morocco), Asia (4 countries), and Europe (31 countries).

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Brazil, Norway, and Sweden.

Beautiful Plume

The Beautiful Plume (Amblyptilia acanthadactyla) is a species in the genus Amblyptilia. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Found across multiple habitat types including temperate coniferous forests, montane grasslands and shrublands, and Mediterranean forests and woodlands, among 4 distinct biome types within the Palearctic biogeographic realm. Populations are.

Cocconeis disculus is a freshwater and brackish-water diatom in the family Cocconeidaceae, belonging to the class Bacillariophyceae—the diatoms, a group of unicellular photosynthetic algae encased in ornate silica cell walls called frustules. Like all members of the genus Cocconeis, C. disculus is an adnate, epiphytic species, meaning it lives attached to substrates—typically the surfaces of aquatic macrophytes, filamentous algae, and sediment particles—rather than living freely in the water column. The frustule of Cocconeis species is distinctive in its bilateral symmetry and the characteristic difference between its two valves: the rapheless valve (RV) lacks the raphe slit present on the raphe valve (RV), a feature used in species identification. Cocconeis disculus has been documented from freshwater bodies across South America and various parts of the Northern Hemisphere, with distribution reflecting its tolerance of a range of water temperatures and nutrient conditions. Diatoms like C. disculus are foundational components of aquatic food webs, fixing carbon through photosynthesis and providing a nutritious food source for grazing invertebrates, protists, and larval fish. The species also contributes to the biosilica cycle through the production and dissolution of its silica frustule. As a benthic, substrate-attached organism, Cocconeis disculus serves as a sensitive bioindicator of water quality conditions in freshwater monitoring programs. Its conservation status is not formally evaluated.