Common Kidney-Vetch vs Compact brome

Anthyllis vulneraria compared with Bromus madritensis

Key Differences

Common Kidney-Vetch is Vulnerable while Compact brome is Not Evaluated.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Kidney-Vetch	Compact brome
Kingdom same	Plantae (Plants)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum same	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Liliopsida (Monocots)
Order	Fabales (Legumes & Allies)	Poales (Grasses)
Family	Fabaceae	Poaceae (Grass Family)
Genus	Anthyllis	Bromus
Species	Anthyllis vulneraria	Bromus madritensis

Evolutionary Relationship

Common Kidney-Vetch and Compact brome share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Magnoliophyta. (Flowering Plants)

View Phylum: Magnoliophyta

Conservation Status

Common Kidney-Vetch

VU — Vulnerable

Compact brome

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Kidney-Vetch	Compact brome
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

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.

Compact brome

Habitat

Typically found in grasslands, wetlands, forests, and cultivated landscapes.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (South Africa), Asia (Japan), Europe (15 countries), North America (Mexico, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia), and South America (Chile).

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.

Compact brome

<em>Bromus madritensis</em>, compact brome or Madrid brome, is an annual grass in the family Poaceae with an expansive native distribution across the Mediterranean basin, extending into parts of Africa, the Middle East, and central Asia. It has also been widely introduced to North America, South America, Australia, and other regions, where it is often considered an invasive weed in disturbed grasslands and shrublands. The species grows typically to 15–50 centimetres in height, producing dense, compact panicles with characteristic bristle-tipped spikelets that aid seed dispersal by attachment to passing animals and clothing. It thrives in dry, disturbed habitats including roadsides, agricultural margins, coastal scrub, and degraded grasslands, demonstrating strong tolerance for poor soils and seasonal drought. Compact brome is a pioneer species that colonises bare ground rapidly and can outcompete native herbaceous vegetation in fragile ecosystems, particularly in California chaparral and Mediterranean-climate shrublands. It is Not Evaluated on the IUCN Red List, consistent with its abundance and broad distribution. The species completes its life cycle entirely within a single growing season, germinating in autumn or winter and setting seed by late spring. Biological traits including precise lifespan data are inherent to its annual habit, but additional morphological and population data remain variable across its wide geographic range.