Common Button Lichen vs common greasewort

Buellia erubescens compared with Aneura pinguis

Key Differences

• Common Button Lichen is Not Evaluated while common greasewort is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Button Lichen	common greasewort
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)	Marchantiophyta (liverwort)
Class	Lecanoromycetes (Lecanoromycetes)	Jungermanniopsida (Jungermanniopsida)
Order	Caliciales (Caliciales)	Metzgeriales (Metzgeriales)
Family	Caliciaceae	Aneuraceae
Genus	Buellia	Aneura
Species	Buellia erubescens	Aneura pinguis

Conservation Status

Common Button Lichen

NE — Not Evaluated

common greasewort

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Button Lichen	common greasewort
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common Button Lichen

Habitat

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

Range

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

common greasewort

Habitat

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

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (6 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Brazil, Colombia).

Common Button Lichen

<em>Buellia erubescens</em>, commonly known as the common button lichen, is a lichen species with documented occurrences across Asia, Europe, and North America, including countries such as Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Taiwan, and the United States. It typically colonizes diverse terrestrial surfaces, often found on bark, rock, or other substrates in temperate and boreal environments. Common button lichen belongs to the genus <em>Buellia</em> within the family Caliciaceae. As a crustose lichen, it typically forms tightly adhered, crust-like thalli on the surfaces it colonizes, making it characteristic of stable, undisturbed substrates. Biological traits such as average lifespan, thallus size, and biomass of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature. The species has not yet been formally evaluated by the IUCN, and its global conservation status therefore remains undetermined. Its occurrence across multiple continents suggests a wide ecological tolerance, though detailed population data and trend assessments are currently lacking for this taxon.

common greasewort

<em>Aneura pinguis</em>, commonly known as common greasewort, is a liverwort belonging to the genus Aneura within the family Aneuraceae. This cryptogamic plant inhabits ecosystems across Asia, Europe, and North America, thriving in moist or waterlogged environments. Its range encompasses Taiwan in Asia, six European countries, the United States in North America, and Brazil and Colombia in South America, indicating a broad geographic distribution across multiple continents. Common greasewort is assessed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. The species typically forms flat, ribbon-like thalli in damp habitats such as stream banks, wet rocks, and boggy ground. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 5 countries:

🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇹🇼 Taiwan 🇺🇸 United States