Clustered yellowtops vs common bottlenose dolphin

Flaveria trinervia compared with Tursiops truncatus

Key Differences

Clustered yellowtops is Not Evaluated while common bottlenose dolphin is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Clustered yellowtops	common bottlenose dolphin
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Asterales (Daisies & Sunflowers)	Cetacea (Whales & Dolphins)
Family	Asteraceae (Daisy Family)	Delphinidae (Oceanic Dolphins)
Genus	Flaveria	Tursiops (Bottlenose Dolphins)
Species	Flaveria trinervia	Tursiops truncatus

Conservation Status

Clustered yellowtops

NE — Not Evaluated

common bottlenose dolphin

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~600.0K

Trend: Stable →

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Clustered yellowtops	common bottlenose dolphin
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	45 years
Average Length	—	3.0 m
Average Weight	—	300.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Clustered yellowtops

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Congo (DRC), Zimbabwe), Asia (4 countries), Europe (Belgium), North America (United States), and South America (Brazil).

common bottlenose dolphin

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 12 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (6 countries), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela).

Clustered yellowtops

Flaveria trinervia, commonly known as clustered yellowtops, is a fast-growing annual herb in the family Asteraceae. Native to tropical and subtropical regions, it has a remarkably wide distribution spanning Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas, where it thrives as a pioneer species in disturbed habitats, roadsides, agricultural margins, and waste ground. The plant typically reaches 30–90 centimeters in height, producing lance-shaped leaves arranged oppositely along branching stems. Its small yellow flower heads are clustered in dense corymbs, giving the species its common name. Flaveria trinervia is notable among plants for utilizing C4 carbon fixation, an efficient photosynthetic pathway that enables rapid growth under warm, high-light conditions with limited water. This metabolic adaptation contributes to its success as a colonizer across diverse tropical and warm-temperate environments. The species is considered Not Evaluated by the IUCN, reflecting its wide range and apparent abundance rather than any formal assessment. Seeds are dispersed by wind, facilitating its spread into new territories. Though not a major agricultural weed, it can establish in cultivated fields. The genus Flaveria, comprising around 23 species, is studied extensively by plant biologists for insights into the evolution of C4 photosynthesis from ancestral C3 pathways.

common bottlenose dolphin

The most studied and recognized dolphin species, bottlenose dolphins inhabit warm and temperate oceans worldwide, from coastal shallows to the open sea. Highly intelligent with large brains relative to body size, they demonstrate self-recognition, complex communication, and social learning. They live in fluid fission-fusion societies and cooperate to herd fish. A keystone indicator species for marine ecosystem health.