vs Buckelwal

Biscogniauxia repanda compared with Megaptera novaeangliae

Taxonomic Classification

Rank		Buckelwal
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Sordariomycetes (Sordariomycetes)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Xylariales (Xylariales)	Cetacea (Whales & Dolphins)
Family	Graphostromataceae	Balaenopteridae (Rorquals)
Genus	Biscogniauxia	Megaptera (Humpback Whales)
Species	Biscogniauxia repanda	Megaptera novaeangliae

Conservation Status

VU — Vulnerable

Buckelwal

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~80.0K

Trend: Increasing ↑

Physical Characteristics

Attribute		Buckelwal
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	50 years
Average Length	—	15.0 m
Average Weight	—	30.0 t

Habitat & Geographic Range

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Brazil, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and United States. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Buckelwal

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 11 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (5 countries), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela). Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Biscogniauxia repanda is a pyrenomycete fungus producing flat, crust-like stromata with embedded perithecia on dead hardwood bark. It inhabits temperate and Mediterranean forests, growing on dead branches and stems of oak, chestnut, and other hardwood trees. This saprotrophic ascomycete decomposes dead hardwood and colonizes stressed or damaged trees.

Buckelwal

Among the most acrobatic of the great whales, humpback whales are renowned for their complex, haunting songs sung by males during breeding season — some lasting hours and evolving over time. Reaching 16 meters and 30 tonnes, they undertake the longest migrations of any mammal. Found in all oceans, humpbacks feed on krill and small fish using cooperative bubble-net feeding. Populations have largely recovered from historic whaling.