Common Oak Fern vs Common Wall Cress

Gymnocarpium dryopteris compared with Arabidopsis thaliana

Key Differences

• Common Oak Fern is Critically Endangered while Common Wall Cress is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Oak Fern	Common Wall Cress
Kingdom same	Plantae (Plants)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Tracheophyta	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Polypodiopsida (Polypodiopsida)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Polypodiales (Polypodiales)	Brassicales (Brassicales)
Family	Cystopteridaceae	Brassicaceae
Genus	Gymnocarpium	Arabidopsis
Species	Gymnocarpium dryopteris	Arabidopsis thaliana

Evolutionary Relationship

Common Oak Fern and Common Wall Cress share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Plantae. (Plants)

Conservation Status

Common Oak Fern

CR — Critically Endangered

Common Wall Cress

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Oak Fern	Common Wall Cress
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common Oak Fern

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, temperate coniferous forests, and boreal forests and taiga, among 4 distinct biome types within the Palearctic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Found across Europe (6 countries) and North America (Canada, United States). Currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Common Wall Cress

Habitat

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

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (South Africa), Asia (Japan, Taiwan), Europe (11 countries), North America (Canada, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia), and South America (Brazil, Chile).

Common Oak Fern

<em>Gymnocarpium dryopteris</em>, the common oak fern, is a delicate terrestrial fern in the family Cystopteridaceae (or Woodsiaceae, depending on classification). Despite its common name, the species is not specifically associated with oak trees; rather, it typically grows in cool, moist, shaded environments including boreal and mixed forests, rocky woodland slopes, stream banks, and shaded cliff faces. <em>Gymnocarpium dryopteris</em> spreads by rhizomes and forms low, spreading colonies with characteristic triangular, three-pinnate fronds that emerge from a slender creeping rootstock. Its geographic range spans Europe and North America, with populations in cool temperate and boreal zones. The species is currently assessed as Critically Endangered in certain regional assessments, suggesting that particular populations face severe decline, likely due to habitat loss, forest fragmentation, and altered hydrology, even if the species retains a broader global range. Biological traits such as lifespan, body size, and diet remain poorly documented at a standardized population level. <em>Gymnocarpium dryopteris</em> is a characteristic indicator of undisturbed cool woodland habitats and is valued for both its ecological role in forest understoreys and its aesthetic appeal.

Common Wall Cress

<em>Arabidopsis thaliana</em>, commonly known as common wall cress or thale cress, is a small annual flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae native to Eurasia and Africa, and now naturalized in North America, Australia, and other temperate regions worldwide. The species has become one of the most important model organisms in plant biology and genetics, owing to its small genome size, short generation time of approximately six weeks, prolific seed production, and ease of laboratory cultivation. <em>Arabidopsis thaliana</em> was the first plant to have its complete genome sequenced, in 2000, revolutionizing our understanding of plant molecular biology, development, and physiology. In nature, it typically grows in rocky outcrops, disturbed sandy soils, walls, roadsides, and waste ground, tolerating poor nutrient conditions and a wide range of climates. The plant produces a basal rosette of small ovate leaves, followed by an erect flowering stem bearing tiny white four-petaled flowers and slender silique seed pods. Despite its modest appearance, <em>Arabidopsis thaliana</em> has facilitated thousands of scientific discoveries in plant genetics, epigenetics, and stress responses. The species is currently assessed as Least Concern by the IUCN. Biological traits such as average lifespan, plant height up to 30 centimeters, and seed output are well-characterized in laboratory settings.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 8 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇨🇦 Canada 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇫🇷 France 🇮🇸 Iceland 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇺🇸 United States