Castor vs Common Ink Cap

Ricinus communis compared with Coprinopsis atramentaria

Key Differences

• Castor is Not Evaluated while Common Ink Cap is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Castor	Common Ink Cap
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Basidiomycota (Club Fungi)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Agaricomycetes (Mushrooms)
Order	Malpighiales (Malpighiales)	Agaricales (Gilled Mushrooms)
Family	Euphorbiaceae	Psathyrellaceae
Genus	Ricinus	Coprinopsis
Species	Ricinus communis	Coprinopsis atramentaria

Conservation Status

Castor

NE — Not Evaluated

Common Ink Cap

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Castor	Common Ink Cap
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Castor

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, flooded grasslands and savannas, and montane grasslands and shrublands, among 7 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (33 countries), Asia (26 countries), Europe (23 countries), North America (15 countries), Oceania and the Pacific (14 countries), and South America (12 countries).

Common Ink Cap

Habitat

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

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (4 countries), and North America (United States).

Castor

The Castor (Ricinus communis) is a species in the genus Ricinus. Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, flooded grasslands and savannas, and montane grasslands and shrublands, among 7 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and hi

Common Ink Cap

<em>Coprinopsis atramentaria</em>, commonly known as the common ink cap, is a saprotrophic fungus in the family Psathyrellaceae. It is classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, with a distribution spanning Asia (including Taiwan), Europe, and North America. The species typically grows on forest floors, buried wood, stumps, and other decomposing woody substrates in temperate regions. As a saprotroph, it plays an important ecological role in breaking down organic matter. The common ink cap is notable for containing coprine, a compound that inhibits aldehyde dehydrogenase and causes unpleasant reactions when consumed with alcohol. Diet information for this species is not available in current records. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 6 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇹🇼 Taiwan 🇺🇸 United States