vs Coastal wattle

Cliostomum corrugatum compared with Acacia cyclops

Key Differences

• is Endangered while Coastal wattle is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank		Coastal wattle
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Lecanoromycetes (Lecanoromycetes)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Lecanorales (Lecanorales)	Fabales (Legumes & Allies)
Family	Ramalinaceae	Fabaceae
Genus	Cliostomum	Acacia
Species	Cliostomum corrugatum	Acacia cyclops

Conservation Status

EN — Endangered

Coastal wattle

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute		Coastal wattle
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

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

Coastal wattle

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 8 distinct biome types spanning the Afrotropic and Palearctic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (13 countries), Asia (Israel), Europe (4 countries), and North America (United States).

Cliostomum corrugatum is a crustose lichen in the family Ramalinaceae, notable for producing characteristically wrinkled or corrugated apothecia that distinguish it from related taxa. The genus Cliostomum is a small group of saxicolous and corticolous crustose lichens with a disjunct distribution in temperate and boreal regions of the Northern Hemisphere, including Europe and North America. The thallus of Cliostomum corrugatum is thin and pale, often nearly immersed in the bark substrate on which it grows, while the pale tan to cream apothecia are flat to slightly convex with the distinctive corrugated or rugose surface. The species is found on the bark of deciduous trees in old, undisturbed woodland, including veteran oaks, beeches, and other broadleaved trees with stable, relatively unpolluted bark chemistry. Cliostomum species are considered indicators of ecological continuity in woodland habitats and are included in lists of ancient woodland indicator species in northwestern Europe. The species is sensitive to air pollution, particularly sulfur dioxide and nitrogen compounds from agricultural and industrial sources, and declined significantly across industrialized regions of Britain and Europe during the 20th century. Recovery has been noted in areas where air quality has improved. The species is of conservation concern in several European countries.

Coastal wattle

Coastal wattle (Acacia cyclops) is a dense, fast-growing shrub in the family Fabaceae, native to the southwestern and southern coastal regions of Western Australia, from Shark Bay south to the Nullarbor Plain. It grows on coastal dunes, sandy scrubland, and limestone substrates near the sea, where it tolerates salt spray, wind, and summer drought. Coastal wattle produces distinctive circular seeds with bright red arillate coatings, making them highly attractive to birds. Although valued in its native range for coastal stabilisation and revegetation, the species has become highly invasive in southern Africa, particularly South Africa, where it was introduced for dune stabilisation in the 19th century and has since spread extensively across the Cape Floristic Region, displacing native fynbos vegetation. It is listed among the 100 worst invasive species globally by the IUCN Invasive Species Specialist Group. In Australia, it is assessed as Least Concern. Management of invasive populations in South Africa involves mechanical removal and biological control efforts aimed at protecting the critically threatened fynbos biome.