clustered earth moss vs Common corncockle

Ephemerum cohaerens compared with Agrostemma githago

Key Differences

• clustered earth moss is Not Evaluated while Common corncockle is Critically Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	clustered earth moss	Common corncockle
Kingdom same	Plantae (Plants)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Bryophyta	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Bryopsida (Bryopsida)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Pottiales (Pottiales)	Caryophyllales (Caryophyllales)
Family	Ephemeraceae	Caryophyllaceae
Genus	Ephemerum	Agrostemma
Species	Ephemerum cohaerens	Agrostemma githago

Evolutionary Relationship

clustered earth moss and Common corncockle share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Plantae. (Plants)

Conservation Status

clustered earth moss

NE — Not Evaluated

Common corncockle

CR — Critically Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	clustered earth moss	Common corncockle
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

clustered earth moss

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Norway, Portugal, and United States.

Common corncockle

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including montane grasslands and shrublands, tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, and temperate coniferous forests, among 13 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Lesotho), Asia (7 countries), Europe (24 countries), North America (Canada, Mexico, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia), and South America (Brazil, Chile). Currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

clustered earth moss

Ephemerum cohaerens is a tiny, ephemeral moss in the family Pottiaceae (or Ephemeraceae, according to some classification schemes) with a distribution across Europe and North America. The genus Ephemerum consists of minute mosses that lack a persistent leafy gametophyte stage visible to the naked eye; instead, the dominant visible structure is the sporophyte, with the diminutive gametophytes bearing single stalked capsules close to the soil surface. E. cohaerens grows on moist, disturbed, bare soil in arable fields, garden beds, paths, and river margins. These ephemeral mosses are early colonizers of open mineral soils, completing their life cycle rapidly and then disappearing. They rely on conditions with minimal competition from taller vegetation. The species has not been formally evaluated by the IUCN for conservation status, reflecting the limited demographic data available for many bryophyte species. Ephemeral mosses of arable habitats are of some conservation interest in Europe, where intensification of agriculture has reduced the extent and frequency of winter-fallow bare soil conditions that these species require.

Common corncockle

<em>Agrostemma githago</em>, commonly known as common corncockle, is an annual flowering plant in the family Caryophyllaceae. Once a widespread weed of cereal crops across Europe, Asia, and beyond, this species is now Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List due to the dramatic decline caused by modern agricultural practices, particularly improved grain cleaning and herbicide use. Corncockle is a tall, slender plant covered in silky white hairs, bearing large, solitary pink to purple flowers with distinctive dark veining. Its seeds contain toxic saponin compounds called githagins, which historically contaminated grain supplies. The species now survives primarily in wildflower conservation areas, seed banks, and traditional farmland conservation schemes. It typically grows in open, disturbed arable soils with full sun exposure. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 3 countries:

🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇺🇸 United States