coast amaranth vs Ring-tailed cat, Cacomistle

Amaranthus pumilus compared with Bassariscus astutus

Key Differences

• coast amaranth is Extinct while Ring-tailed cat, Cacomistle is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	coast amaranth	Ring-tailed cat, Cacomistle
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Caryophyllales (Caryophyllales)	Carnivora (Carnivorans)
Family	Amaranthaceae	Procyonidae (Raccoons)
Genus	Amaranthus	Bassariscus
Species	Amaranthus pumilus	Bassariscus astutus

Conservation Status

coast amaranth

EX — Extinct

Ring-tailed cat, Cacomistle

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	coast amaranth	Ring-tailed cat, Cacomistle
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.

Ring-tailed cat, Cacomistle

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

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.