Choke vs Four-toed Hedgehog

Epichloe typhina compared with Atelerix albiventris

Key Differences

• Choke is Not Evaluated while Four-toed Hedgehog is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Choke	Four-toed Hedgehog
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Sordariomycetes (Sordariomycetes)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Hypocreales (Hypocreales)	Erinaceomorpha (Erinaceomorpha)
Family	Clavicipitaceae	Erinaceidae
Genus	Epichloe	Atelerix
Species	Epichloe typhina	Atelerix albiventris

Conservation Status

Choke

NE — Not Evaluated

Four-toed Hedgehog

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Choke	Four-toed Hedgehog
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Choke

Habitat

Native to North America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Found in United States.

Four-toed Hedgehog

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Distributed across Ecuador and Spain.

Choke

Choke (Epichloe typhina) is an endophytic and pathogenic fungus in the family Clavicipitaceae, phylum Ascomycota, that colonises the tissues of various cool-season grasses (Poaceae) across Europe and North America. The name refers to the disease it causes — infected grass tillers are typically 'choked' (prevented from flowering) when the fungus produces a dense, white to cream-coloured, stromata (a compact fungal structure) that surrounds the flowering stem before it can emerge, suppressing seed production. Epichloe species exist along a mutualism-parasitism continuum; some strains are biotrophic endophytes living almost entirely within grass tissues without obvious symptoms and conferring benefits to the host such as increased drought resistance and deterrence of herbivores through alkaloid production, while others — including E. typhina — are more parasitic in nature, sterilising infected host tillers. The fungus spreads via airborne ascospores produced on its stroma that infect new host plants. Related Epichloe/Neotyphodium endophytes are of great practical importance to agriculture as they produce ergot alkaloids and other compounds that can cause toxicosis in livestock grazing infected pasture grasses. As a fungal pathogen/endophyte rather than a wildlife species, it is Not Evaluated by the IUCN.