Candelnut vs Gharial

Aleurites rockinghamensis compared with Gavialis gangeticus

Key Differences

• Candelnut is Least Concern while Gharial is Critically Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Candelnut	Gharial
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Reptilia (Reptiles)
Order	Malpighiales (Malpighiales)	Crocodylia (Crocodilians)
Family	Euphorbiaceae	Crocodylidae (Crocodiles)
Genus	Aleurites	Crocodylus (True Crocodiles)
Species	Aleurites rockinghamensis	Gavialis gangeticus

Conservation Status

Candelnut

LC — Least Concern

Gharial

CR — Critically Endangered

Population: ~650

Trend: Increasing ↑

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Candelnut	Gharial
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	60 years
Average Length	—	5.0 m
Average Weight	—	200.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Candelnut

Habitat

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

Range

Found in India.

Gharial

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across India and Nepal. Currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Candelnut

The Candelnut (Aleurites rockinghamensis) is a species in the genus Aleurites. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Gharial

The gharial is a fish-eating crocodilian with a distinctive long, narrow snout. It is critically endangered with fewer than 700 adults.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 1 countries:

🇮🇳 India