vs Gritty Pixie-Cup Lichen

Cladonia bellidiflora compared with Cladonia merochlorophaea

Key Differences

• is Critically Endangered while Gritty Pixie-Cup Lichen is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank		Gritty Pixie-Cup Lichen
Kingdom same	Fungi (Fungi)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum same	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)
Class same	Lecanoromycetes (Lecanoromycetes)	Lecanoromycetes (Lecanoromycetes)
Order same	Lecanorales (Lecanorales)	Lecanorales (Lecanorales)
Family same	Cladoniaceae	Cladoniaceae
Genus same	Cladonia	Cladonia
Species	Cladonia bellidiflora	Cladonia merochlorophaea

Evolutionary Relationship

and Gritty Pixie-Cup Lichen share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Cladonia.

Conservation Status

CR — Critically Endangered

Gritty Pixie-Cup Lichen

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute		Gritty Pixie-Cup Lichen
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, and temperate coniferous 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 Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, and Taiwan. Currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Gritty Pixie-Cup Lichen

Habitat

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

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (4 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Brazil, Colombia).

Cladonia bellidiflora is an Arctic-alpine cup lichen producing reddish-tipped podetia emerging from a basal squamule layer on acidic soil and rock in high-altitude and high-latitude environments. It is found across Arctic and alpine zones in the Northern Hemisphere but is rare at its southern range margins. Critically Endangered in certain regions due to climate warming, habitat loss, and restricted distribution.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇸🇪 Sweden