Greater dodder vs Noctule

Cuscuta europaea compared with Nyctalus noctula

Key Differences

• Greater dodder is Least Concern while Noctule is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Greater dodder	Noctule
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Solanales (Solanales)	Chiroptera (Bats)
Family	Convolvulaceae	Vespertilionidae
Genus	Cuscuta	Nyctalus
Species	Cuscuta europaea	Nyctalus noctula

Conservation Status

Greater dodder

LC — Least Concern

Noctule

VU — Vulnerable

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Greater dodder	Noctule
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Greater dodder

Habitat

Inhabits tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests within the Indomalayan biogeographic realm.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Bhutan, Turkey), Europe (5 countries), and North America (United States).

Noctule

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

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

Noctule

Noctule (Nyctalus noctula) is classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List. Facing a high risk of endangerment in the wild, with declining populations and increasing habitat pressure.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

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