coast amaranth vs Salted Shield Lichen

Amaranthus pumilus compared with Parmelia saxatilis

Key Differences

coast amaranth is Extinct while Salted Shield Lichen is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	coast amaranth	Salted Shield Lichen
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Lecanoromycetes (Lecanoromycetes)
Order	Caryophyllales (Caryophyllales)	Lecanorales (Lecanorales)
Family	Amaranthaceae	Parmeliaceae
Genus	Amaranthus	Parmelia
Species	Amaranthus pumilus	Parmelia saxatilis

Conservation Status

coast amaranth

EX — Extinct

Salted Shield Lichen

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	coast amaranth	Salted Shield Lichen
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.

Salted Shield Lichen

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, and United States.

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.