clouded magpie vs Dense-flowered Fumitory

Abraxas sylvata compared with Fumaria densiflora

Key Differences

clouded magpie is Vulnerable while Dense-flowered Fumitory is Critically Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	clouded magpie	Dense-flowered Fumitory
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Ranunculales (Ranunculales)
Family	Geometridae	Papaveraceae
Genus	Abraxas	Fumaria
Species	Abraxas sylvata	Fumaria densiflora

Conservation Status

clouded magpie

VU — Vulnerable

Dense-flowered Fumitory

CR — Critically Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	clouded magpie	Dense-flowered Fumitory
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.

Dense-flowered Fumitory

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, temperate coniferous forests, and Mediterranean forests and woodlands within the Palearctic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (11 countries), North America (United States), and Oceania and the Pacific (Australia). Currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

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.