Coastal Flat-body vs common intertidal amphipod

Agonopterix yeatiana compared with Gammarus locusta

Key Differences

• Coastal Flat-body is Near Threatened while common intertidal amphipod is Not Evaluated.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Coastal Flat-body	common intertidal amphipod
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Malacostraca (Crustaceans)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Amphipoda (Amphipoda)
Family	Depressariidae	Gammaridae
Genus	Agonopterix	Gammarus
Species	Agonopterix yeatiana	Gammarus locusta

Evolutionary Relationship

Coastal Flat-body and common intertidal amphipod share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Arthropoda. (Arthropods)

Conservation Status

Coastal Flat-body

NT — Near Threatened

common intertidal amphipod

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Coastal Flat-body	common intertidal amphipod
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Coastal Flat-body

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, and Sweden. Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

common intertidal amphipod

Habitat

Typically found in marine, freshwater, and terrestrial environments.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden.

Coastal Flat-body

Agonopterix yeatiana, the coastal flat-body, is a small moth in the family Depressariidae native to coastal and calcareous grassland habitats across western and northern Europe, with records from Belgium, Denmark, and Sweden. Moths in the family Depressariidae, commonly called flat-body moths due to the depressed posture they adopt when resting with wings held flat against the surface, are associated predominantly with umbellifer plants of the family Apiaceae as larval hosts. Agonopterix yeatiana larvae feed on wild carrot (Daucus carota), wild parsnip (Pastinaca sativa), and related coastal and grassland Apiaceae species, inhabiting the open, often calcareous or sandy habitats where these plants grow. Adult moths have greyish-brown forewing with a distinctive pattern of spots and dashes and reach approximately 8–12 millimeters in wingspan. The species is classified as Near Threatened by the IUCN, reflecting declines associated with the loss of traditional hay meadow management, coastal grassland degradation, and scrub encroachment that eliminates the open, flower-rich grassland habitats supporting its host plants. Agricultural intensification has reduced wild umbellifer populations significantly across lowland Europe, reducing food resources for larvae of specialist moths like A. yeatiana.

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.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 2 countries:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇸🇪 Sweden