clouded magpie vs

Abraxas sylvata compared with Coccomyces coronatus

Key Differences

clouded magpie is Vulnerable while is Not Evaluated.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	clouded magpie
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Leotiomycetes (Leotiomycetes)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Rhytismatales (Rhytismatales)
Family	Geometridae	Rhytismataceae
Genus	Abraxas	Coccomyces
Species	Abraxas sylvata	Coccomyces coronatus

Conservation Status

clouded magpie

VU — Vulnerable

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

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

Habitat & Geographic Range

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.

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

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.

Coccomyces coronatus is a discomycete fungus in the family Rhytismataceae, a group of ascomycetes specialized in the colonization and decomposition of dead plant material, particularly fallen leaves and decaying vegetation in temperate woodland ecosystems. The genus Coccomyces encompasses numerous species that produce small, inconspicuous apothecia—the cup-shaped or disc-shaped sexual fruiting bodies characteristic of discomycetes—embedded in or erupting from the surfaces of decaying leaves and plant debris. Coccomyces coronatus has been documented from European temperate forests, where it colonizes the dead leaves of deciduous trees, contributing to the decomposition of leaf litter and the cycling of nutrients back into the soil ecosystem. The fruiting bodies are typically dark, disc-shaped, and minute, often requiring hand lens or microscopic examination to observe in detail. Like other rhytismatacean fungi, C. coronatus produces ascospores that are discharged from the asci within the apothecium and dispersed by air currents or water splash to colonize new substrate. The specific epithet 'coronatus' likely refers to a crown-like or crownate morphological feature of the fruiting body or spore apparatus. As a saprotrophic organism, this fungus plays an important functional role in forest floor decomposition, breaking down recalcitrant leaf material alongside bacteria, invertebrates, and other fungi. Its conservation status has not been evaluated by the IUCN.