Ciliate Crystalwort vs koala

Riccia crozalsii compared with Phascolarctos cinereus

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Ciliate Crystalwort	koala
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Marchantiophyta (liverwort)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Marchantiopsida (Marchantiopsida)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Marchantiales (Marchantiales)	Diprotodontia (Marsupials)
Family	Ricciaceae	Phascolarctidae (Koalas)
Genus	Riccia	Phascolarctos (Koalas)
Species	Riccia crozalsii	Phascolarctos cinereus

Conservation Status

Ciliate Crystalwort

VU — Vulnerable

koala

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~100.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Ciliate Crystalwort	koala
Diet	—	Herbivore
Average Lifespan	—	15 years
Average Length	—	75 cm
Average Weight	—	10.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Ciliate Crystalwort

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

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

koala

Habitat

Typically found in grasslands, forests, and vegetated habitats.

Range

Found in Australia. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Ciliate Crystalwort

Ciliate crystalwort (Riccia crozalsii) is a thalloid liverwort in the family Ricciaceae, classified as Vulnerable in Europe. It grows as a flat, strap-like or rosette-forming thallus, typically in damp, disturbed or ephemeral habitats such as the margins of seasonal pools, rutted tracks, and temporarily flooded ground with sparse vegetation cover. The species is characterized by thallus margins fringed with fine cilia-like teeth, which give it its common name. Riccia crozalsii is found in Mediterranean and Atlantic regions of Europe, with records from Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, and parts of the British Isles, though populations are generally sparse and localized. It tends to appear in winter and spring when suitable wet conditions prevail, and the thallus desiccates or disappears during dry summer months. The species is assessed as Vulnerable due to the loss and degradation of its specialized ephemeral wetland habitats, driven by drainage, agricultural intensification, and altered hydrological regimes across Europe. As with many liverworts dependent on wet, open habitats, Riccia crozalsii has experienced declines in regions where traditional low-intensity land management practices have been abandoned. Monitoring and protection of ephemeral pool and wetland margins are key conservation actions for this species.

koala

Iconic marsupial of eastern and southeastern Australia, koalas weigh up to 15 kg and spend up to 22 hours daily sleeping to conserve energy from their low-calorie eucalyptus leaf diet. Highly specialized to process toxic eucalyptus compounds that would kill most other mammals, they have gut microbiomes uniquely adapted for detoxification. Listed as Endangered in 2022, with populations decimated by chlamydia disease, habitat clearing, and climate change.