Cloud Forest Akodont vs Thyme Plume

Akodon torques compared with Merrifieldia leucodactyla

Key Differences

• Cloud Forest Akodont is Least Concern while Thyme Plume is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Cloud Forest Akodont	Thyme Plume
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Rodentia (Rodents)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Cricetidae	Pterophoridae
Genus	Akodon	Merrifieldia
Species	Akodon torques	Merrifieldia leucodactyla

Evolutionary Relationship

Cloud Forest Akodont and Thyme Plume share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

Cloud Forest Akodont

LC — Least Concern

Thyme Plume

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Cloud Forest Akodont	Thyme Plume
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Cloud Forest Akodont

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Thyme Plume

Habitat

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

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Algeria, Morocco), Asia (7 countries), and Europe (35 countries). Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Cloud Forest Akodont

Cloud forest akodonts are small rodents in the genus Akodon (family Cricetidae, subfamily Sigmodontinae) adapted to the cool, moist cloud forests of the Andean mountain chain in South America. These small mice, typically 15–25 g body weight, are among the most diverse rodent genera in the Neotropics, with dozens of species occupying a range of habitats from tropical lowland forest to high-elevation grasslands and cloud forest margins. Cloud forest species live in mossy, fern-rich undergrowth at elevations typically between 1,500 and 3,500 meters, where they forage for seeds, fungi, invertebrates, and plant material among dense vegetation and under fallen logs. Akodonts are important prey species for forest raptors, small cats, and mustelids, and serve as seed dispersers in cloud forest ecosystems. Many cloud forest akodont species have restricted ranges tied to specific elevation bands on individual mountain ranges, making them vulnerable to climate change-driven upslope habitat shifts that compress available habitat and may eventually eliminate suitable conditions on mountains of insufficient height.