Common Spreadwing vs European pine marten

Lestes sponsa compared with Martes martes

Key Differences

• Common Spreadwing is Least Concern while European pine marten is Critically Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Spreadwing	European pine marten
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Odonata (Odonata)	Carnivora (Carnivorans)
Family	Lestidae	Mustelidae (Weasels & Otters)
Genus	Lestes	Martes
Species	Lestes sponsa	Martes martes

Evolutionary Relationship

Common Spreadwing and European pine marten share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

Common Spreadwing

LC — Least Concern

European pine marten

CR — Critically Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Spreadwing	European pine marten
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common Spreadwing

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, and Sweden.

European pine marten

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, temperate coniferous forests, and Mediterranean forests and woodlands within the Palearctic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

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

Common Spreadwing

Common Spreadwing (Lestes sponsa) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

European pine marten

European pine marten (Martes martes) is classified as Critically Endangered (CR) on the IUCN Red List. Facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild due to severe population decline and habitat loss.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden