Coast Myall vs Elf Ears Lichen

Acacia binervia compared with Normandina pulchella

Key Differences

Coast Myall is Least Concern while Elf Ears Lichen is Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Coast Myall	Elf Ears Lichen
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Eurotiomycetes (Eurotiomycetes)
Order	Fabales (Legumes & Allies)	Verrucariales (Verrucariales)
Family	Fabaceae	Verrucariaceae
Genus	Acacia	Normandina
Species	Acacia binervia	Normandina pulchella

Conservation Status

Coast Myall

LC — Least Concern

Elf Ears Lichen

EN — Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Coast Myall	Elf Ears Lichen
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Coast Myall

Habitat

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

Elf Ears Lichen

Habitat

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

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (4 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Colombia). Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Coast Myall

Coast myall (Acacia binervia) is a small to medium tree or tall shrub in the family Fabaceae, native to coastal and near-coastal regions of New South Wales and Queensland in eastern Australia. It grows in coastal heath, dry sclerophyll woodland, and scrubby vegetation on sandy or rocky substrates, often in association with banksias and eucalypts. Like most Australian wattles, coast myall produces phyllodes—flattened leaf-stalks functioning as leaves—rather than true compound leaves in mature plants. The dark green phyllodes are distinctive, with two main veins, giving rise to the species name binervia. Golden-yellow, spherical flower heads are produced in winter to spring, attracting native bees. The genus Acacia sensu lato encompasses hundreds of species across Australia and globally, many of which play important ecological roles in nitrogen cycling through root symbioses. Coast myall is assessed as Least Concern by the IUCN. It is sometimes planted in coastal revegetation projects for its tolerance of poor, sandy soils, drought, and salt-laden winds.