vs clouded magpie

Chroococcus cumulatus compared with Abraxas sylvata

Key Differences

is Not Evaluated while clouded magpie is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank		clouded magpie
Kingdom	Bacteria (Bacteria)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Cyanobacteria (Cyanobacteria)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Cyanobacteriia	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Cyanobacteriales	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Microcystaceae	Geometridae
Genus	Chroococcus	Abraxas
Species	Chroococcus cumulatus	Abraxas sylvata

Conservation Status

NE — Not Evaluated

clouded magpie

VU — Vulnerable

Physical Characteristics

Attribute		clouded magpie
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Norway and Sweden.

clouded magpie

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Chroococcus cumulatus is a cyanobacterium in the family Chroococcaceae, found in freshwater and semi-aquatic habitats. Members of the genus Chroococcus are among the simplest organized cyanobacteria, consisting of spherical cells that divide by binary fission to form pairs or tetrads held together within layered gelatinous sheaths. Cyanobacteria are cosmopolitan prokaryotes that carry out oxygenic photosynthesis using pigments including chlorophyll a, phycocyanin, and phycoerythrin. Chroococcus species occur in diverse aquatic habitats ranging from standing freshwater bodies to damp soil surfaces, rock faces, and tree bark in humid environments. The genus has historically been characterized primarily on the basis of cell size, sheath structure, and colony organization, though molecular analysis has increasingly revealed cryptic diversity within morphologically defined groups. Chroococcus cumulatus has been documented from northern European freshwater habitats. As a microscopic prokaryote, it has not been assessed by the IUCN, and its ecological role centers on primary production at the base of aquatic food webs in its habitat.

clouded magpie

The clouded magpie (Abraxas sylvata) is a geometrid moth in the family Geometridae found across temperate Europe, extending eastward through Russia to Japan. The adult wingspan measures approximately 32–42 mm, with white wings bearing a distinctive pattern of yellow-orange and dark grey to black spots and patches arranged in rows across the forewing and hindwing, creating a striking patterned appearance resembling the magpie coloring of the related magpie moth Abraxas grossulariata, but with a more yellowish, muted tone and less black — hence 'clouded.' Adults fly in one generation from June to July, resting on leaf surfaces and attending woodland flowers for nectar. The larvae feed on wych elm (Ulmus glabra) and occasionally other Ulmus species in mature deciduous woodland and woodland edges. The clouded magpie has become less common in parts of its European range due to the widespread loss of mature elms from Dutch elm disease, which devastated European elm populations from the 1970s onward. Conservation of this species requires the protection of surviving mature elm trees and management of regrowth elms in woodland ecosystems.