Northern Emerald vs Polynesian rat

Somatochlora arctica compared with Rattus exulans

Key Differences

• Northern Emerald is Endangered while Polynesian rat is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Northern Emerald	Polynesian rat
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Odonata (Odonata)	Rodentia (Rodents)
Family	Corduliidae	Muridae (Mice & Rats)
Genus	Somatochlora	Rattus
Species	Somatochlora arctica	Rattus exulans

Evolutionary Relationship

Northern Emerald and Polynesian rat share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

Northern Emerald

EN — Endangered

Polynesian rat

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Northern Emerald	Polynesian rat
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Northern Emerald

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

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

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).

Northern Emerald

Northern Emerald (Somatochlora arctica) is classified as Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List. At high risk of extinction in the wild, with significant population decline and ongoing threats to survival.