Bitter Scalewort vs brittlestar

Porella arboris-vitae compared with Amphiura chiajei

Key Differences

• Bitter Scalewort is Vulnerable while brittlestar is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Bitter Scalewort	brittlestar
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Marchantiophyta (liverwort)	Echinodermata (Echinoderms)
Class	Jungermanniopsida (Jungermanniopsida)	Ophiuroidea (Ophiuroidea)
Order	Porellales (Porellales)	Amphilepidida (Amphilepidida)
Family	Porellaceae	Amphiuridae
Genus	Porella	Amphiura
Species	Porella arboris-vitae	Amphiura chiajei

Conservation Status

Bitter Scalewort

VU — Vulnerable

brittlestar

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Bitter Scalewort	brittlestar
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Bitter Scalewort

Habitat

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

Range

Found across Asia (Taiwan) and Europe (5 countries). Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

brittlestar

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden.

Bitter Scalewort

The Bitter Scalewort (Porella arboris-vitae) is a species in the genus Porella. It is currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. Native to Asia and Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

brittlestar

The Brittlestar (Amphiura chiajei) is a species in the genus Amphiura. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 3 countries:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden