Cotton Thistle vs Red-billed Duck

Onopordum acanthium compared with Anas erythrorhyncha

Key Differences

• Cotton Thistle is Endangered while Red-billed Duck is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Cotton Thistle	Red-billed Duck
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Asterales (Daisies & Sunflowers)	Anseriformes (Anseriformes)
Family	Asteraceae (Daisy Family)	Anatidae
Genus	Onopordum	Anas
Species	Onopordum acanthium	Anas erythrorhyncha

Conservation Status

Cotton Thistle

EN — Endangered

Red-billed Duck

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Cotton Thistle	Red-billed Duck
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Cotton Thistle

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including temperate broadleaf and mixed forests, tundra, and tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, among 10 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Georgia, India, Japan), Europe (22 countries), North America (Canada, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia, New Zealand), and South America (Argentina, Brazil, Chile). Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Red-billed Duck

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Found across Europe (6 countries) and South America (Ecuador).

Red-billed Duck

Red-billed Duck (Anas erythrorhyncha) 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.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 6 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇫🇷 France 🇩🇪 Germany 🇳🇱 Netherlands 🇳🇴 Norway 🇬🇧 United Kingdom