Big-Leaf Maple vs Grass-Leaf Pondweed

Acer macrophyllum compared with Potamogeton gramineus

Key Differences

• Big-Leaf Maple is Least Concern while Grass-Leaf Pondweed is Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Big-Leaf Maple	Grass-Leaf Pondweed
Kingdom same	Plantae (Plants)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum same	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Liliopsida (Monocots)
Order	Sapindales (Sapindales)	Alismatales (Alismatales)
Family	Sapindaceae	Potamogetonaceae
Genus	Acer	Potamogeton
Species	Acer macrophyllum	Potamogeton gramineus

Evolutionary Relationship

Big-Leaf Maple and Grass-Leaf Pondweed share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Magnoliophyta. (Flowering Plants)

Conservation Status

Big-Leaf Maple

LC — Least Concern

Grass-Leaf Pondweed

EN — Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Big-Leaf Maple	Grass-Leaf Pondweed
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Big-Leaf Maple

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Canada, Ireland, and United States.

Grass-Leaf Pondweed

Habitat

Inhabits boreal forests and taiga within the Palearctic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Found across Europe (8 countries) and North America (Canada, United States). Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Big-Leaf Maple

The Big-Leaf Maple (Acer macrophyllum) is a species in the genus Acer. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 3 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇨🇦 Canada 🇺🇸 United States