Imperial shag vs Polynesian rat

Leucocarbo atriceps compared with Rattus exulans

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Imperial shag	Polynesian rat
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Aves (Birds)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Suliformes (Suliformes)	Rodentia (Rodents)
Family	Phalacrocoracidae	Muridae (Mice & Rats)
Genus	Leucocarbo	Rattus
Species	Leucocarbo atriceps	Rattus exulans

Evolutionary Relationship

Imperial shag and Polynesian rat share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Chordata. (Chordates)

Conservation Status

Imperial shag

LC — Least Concern

Polynesian rat

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Imperial shag	Polynesian rat
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Imperial shag

Habitat

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

Polynesian rat

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical coniferous forests, among 4 distinct biome types spanning the Australasia and Indomalayan realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (6 countries), Europe (United Kingdom), North America (United States), Oceania and the Pacific (11 countries), and South America (Chile).