Eastern Mole vs Western Thyme Plume

Scalopus aquaticus compared with Merrifieldia tridactyla

Key Differences

• Eastern Mole is Least Concern while Western Thyme Plume is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Eastern Mole	Western Thyme Plume
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Soricomorpha (Soricomorpha)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Talpidae	Pterophoridae
Genus	Scalopus	Merrifieldia
Species	Scalopus aquaticus	Merrifieldia tridactyla

Evolutionary Relationship

Eastern Mole and Western Thyme Plume share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

Eastern Mole

LC — Least Concern

Western Thyme Plume

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Eastern Mole	Western Thyme Plume
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Eastern Mole

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Western Thyme Plume

Habitat

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

Range

Found across Asia (5 countries) and Europe (28 countries). Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.