Blue-Girdled Webcap vs Buckelwal

Cortinarius collinitus compared with Megaptera novaeangliae

Key Differences

Blue-Girdled Webcap is Least Concern while Buckelwal is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Blue-Girdled Webcap	Buckelwal
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Basidiomycota (Club Fungi)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Agaricomycetes (Mushrooms)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Agaricales (Gilled Mushrooms)	Cetacea (Whales & Dolphins)
Family	Cortinariaceae	Balaenopteridae (Rorquals)
Genus	Cortinarius	Megaptera (Humpback Whales)
Species	Cortinarius collinitus	Megaptera novaeangliae

Conservation Status

Blue-Girdled Webcap

LC — Least Concern

Buckelwal

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~80.0K

Trend: Increasing ↑

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Blue-Girdled Webcap	Buckelwal
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	50 years
Average Length	—	15.0 m
Average Weight	—	30.0 t

Habitat & Geographic Range

Blue-Girdled Webcap

Habitat

Typically found in forest floors, decomposing wood, and soil ecosystems.

Range

Distributed across Norway, Sweden, and United States.

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.

Blue-Girdled Webcap

The Blue Girdled Webcap (Cortinarius collinitus) is a species in the genus Cortinarius. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in forest floors, decomposing wood, and soil ecosystems.

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.