Globe Thistle vs limestone fern

Echinops exaltatus compared with Gymnocarpium robertianum

Key Differences

• Globe Thistle is Not Evaluated while limestone fern is Critically Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Globe Thistle	limestone fern
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Plantae (Plants)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Tracheophyta
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Polypodiopsida (Polypodiopsida)
Order	Afrosoricida (Afrosoricida)	Polypodiales (Polypodiales)
Family	Tenrecidae	Cystopteridaceae
Genus	Echinops	Gymnocarpium
Species	Echinops exaltatus	Gymnocarpium robertianum

Conservation Status

Globe Thistle

NE — Not Evaluated

limestone fern

CR — Critically Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Globe Thistle	limestone fern
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Globe Thistle

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Found across Europe (13 countries) and North America (Canada, United States).

limestone fern

Habitat

Typically found in moist, shaded forest floors and tropical canopies.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Canada, Norway, and Sweden. Currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇨🇦 Canada 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden