coast amaranth vs common intertidal amphipod

Amaranthus pumilus compared with Gammarus locusta

Key Differences

• coast amaranth is Extinct while common intertidal amphipod is Not Evaluated.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	coast amaranth	common intertidal amphipod
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Malacostraca (Crustaceans)
Order	Caryophyllales (Caryophyllales)	Amphipoda (Amphipoda)
Family	Amaranthaceae	Gammaridae
Genus	Amaranthus	Gammarus
Species	Amaranthus pumilus	Gammarus locusta

Conservation Status

coast amaranth

EX — Extinct

common intertidal amphipod

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	coast amaranth	common intertidal amphipod
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

coast amaranth

Habitat

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

Range

Found in Japan.

common intertidal amphipod

Habitat

Typically found in marine, freshwater, and terrestrial environments.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden.

coast amaranth

Coast amaranth (Amaranthus pumilus) is an annual herb in the family Amaranthaceae, native to the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of the eastern United States, where it once grew on coastal foredunes, beach strand, and shell-hash substrates above the high tide line from New York south to South Carolina. It is a low-growing, fleshy plant with small, rounded leaves and inconspicuous green flowers typical of the genus. Coast amaranth is assessed as Extinct in the Wild by the IUCN, as it has not been reliably documented from wild populations since the mid-20th century; the last confirmed collections date to the 1960s. The species' decline and likely extinction resulted from intense human pressure on Atlantic coastal habitats through shoreline development, beach stabilisation, vehicular traffic on beaches, and increased storm frequency disrupting pioneer dune vegetation. It is federally listed as Threatened in the United States, though this listing predates confirmed extinction in the wild. A small number of ex-situ accessions may exist in botanical garden collections. Genetic material and seed banking efforts represent the only remaining conservation options for this critically reduced species.

common intertidal amphipod

<em>Gammarus locusta</em>, commonly known as the common intertidal amphipod, is a crustacean in the family Gammaridae. Its conservation status has not been formally evaluated by the IUCN. The species is recorded from Denmark, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden, indicating a distribution along the northeastern Atlantic coast of Europe. It typically inhabits intertidal and shallow subtidal marine and estuarine environments, where it is found among algae, under rocks, and in sediments. Gammarus amphipods are ecologically important as detritivores and as prey for shorebirds, fish, and other invertebrates in coastal food webs. Diet information for this species is not available in current records. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.