common hydra vs Common Kidney-Vetch

Hydra vulgaris compared with Anthyllis vulneraria

Key Differences

common hydra is Not Evaluated while Common Kidney-Vetch is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	common hydra	Common Kidney-Vetch
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Cnidaria (Cnidarians)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Hydrozoa (Hydrozoa)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Anthoathecata (Anthoathecata)	Fabales (Legumes & Allies)
Family	Hydridae	Fabaceae
Genus	Hydra	Anthyllis
Species	Hydra vulgaris	Anthyllis vulneraria

Conservation Status

common hydra

NE — Not Evaluated

Common Kidney-Vetch

VU — Vulnerable

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	common hydra	Common Kidney-Vetch
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

common hydra

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

Common Kidney-Vetch

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, and temperate coniferous forests, among 6 distinct biome types spanning the Indomalayan and Oceanian and Palearctic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Libya), Asia (Japan), Europe (9 countries), North America (Canada, United States), and Oceania and the Pacific (Australia). Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

common hydra

<em>Hydra vulgaris</em>, commonly known as the common hydra, is a small freshwater cnidarian in the family Hydridae. Its conservation status has not been formally evaluated by the IUCN. The species is recorded from Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, with its native range understood to encompass Europe broadly. It typically inhabits slow-moving or still freshwater bodies such as ponds, lakes, and streams, where it attaches to aquatic vegetation or submerged substrates. The common hydra is notable for its remarkable regenerative capabilities and has been the subject of substantial biological research. Diet information for this species is not available in current records. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.

Common Kidney-Vetch

Common Kidney-Vetch (<em>Anthyllis vulneraria</em>) is a flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae, assessed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List due to habitat degradation and agricultural intensification across parts of its range. It is widely distributed across Africa (Libya), Asia (Japan), Europe (nine countries), North America (Canada and the United States), and Oceania (Australia), occupying six distinct biome types and occurring within the Indomalayan and Oceanian biogeographic realms. The species typically grows in dry, calcareous grasslands, coastal cliffs, sand dunes, and rocky slopes, often favoring nutrient-poor soils. It is an important larval food plant for certain butterfly species, particularly the Small Blue butterfly in Europe, and contributes to soil fertility through nitrogen fixation via root nodules. Its cheerful yellow, orange, or red flower heads make it a recognizable component of chalk and limestone grassland communities. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.