Black Lichen vs Common Kidney-Vetch

Lichina pygmaea compared with Anthyllis vulneraria

Key Differences

Black Lichen is Extinct while Common Kidney-Vetch is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Black Lichen	Common Kidney-Vetch
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Lichinomycetes (Lichinomycetes)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Lichinales (Lichinales)	Fabales (Legumes & Allies)
Family	Lichinaceae	Fabaceae
Genus	Lichina	Anthyllis
Species	Lichina pygmaea	Anthyllis vulneraria

Conservation Status

Black Lichen

EX — Extinct

Common Kidney-Vetch

VU — Vulnerable

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Black Lichen	Common Kidney-Vetch
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Black Lichen

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden.

Common Kidney-Vetch

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, and temperate coniferous forests, among 6 distinct biome types spanning the Indomalayan and Oceanian and Palearctic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Libya), Asia (Japan), Europe (9 countries), North America (Canada, United States), and Oceania and the Pacific (Australia). Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Black Lichen

The Black Lichen (Lichina pygmaea) is a species in the genus Lichina. It is currently classified as Extinct on the IUCN Red List. Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region. Its geographic range spans Distributed across Denmark, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden.

Common Kidney-Vetch

Common Kidney-Vetch (<em>Anthyllis vulneraria</em>) is a flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae, assessed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List due to habitat degradation and agricultural intensification across parts of its range. It is widely distributed across Africa (Libya), Asia (Japan), Europe (nine countries), North America (Canada and the United States), and Oceania (Australia), occupying six distinct biome types and occurring within the Indomalayan and Oceanian biogeographic realms. The species typically grows in dry, calcareous grasslands, coastal cliffs, sand dunes, and rocky slopes, often favoring nutrient-poor soils. It is an important larval food plant for certain butterfly species, particularly the Small Blue butterfly in Europe, and contributes to soil fertility through nitrogen fixation via root nodules. Its cheerful yellow, orange, or red flower heads make it a recognizable component of chalk and limestone grassland communities. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.