Rötender Wirrling vs Quendelseide

Abortiporus biennis compared with Cuscuta epithymum

Key Differences

Rötender Wirrling is Near Threatened while Quendelseide is Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Rötender Wirrling	Quendelseide
Kingdom	Fungi (Pilze)	Plantae (Pflanzen)
Phylum	Basidiomycota (Ständerpilze)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Agaricomycetes (Mushrooms)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Polyporales (Stielporlingsartige)	Solanales (Nachtschattenartige)
Family	Podoscyphaceae	Convolvulaceae
Genus	Abortiporus	Cuscuta
Species	Abortiporus biennis	Cuscuta epithymum

Conservation Status

Rötender Wirrling

NT — Near Threatened

Quendelseide

EN — Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Rötender Wirrling	Quendelseide
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Rötender Wirrling

Habitat

Typically found in forest floors, decomposing wood, and soil ecosystems.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (5 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Brazil). Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Quendelseide

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, montane grasslands and shrublands, and Mediterranean forests and woodlands, among 8 distinct biome types spanning the Afrotropic and Neotropic and Palearctic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (South Africa), Europe (9 countries), North America (Canada, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia), and South America (Argentina, Venezuela). Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Rötender Wirrling

The Blushing Rosette (Abortiporus biennis) is a species in the genus Abortiporus. It is currently classified as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in forest floors, decomposing wood, and soil ecosystems.

Quendelseide

Clover dodder (Cuscuta epithymum) is a parasitic flowering plant in the family Convolvulaceae, a leafless, twining vine that obtains all its water and nutrients from host plants via haustoria — specialized penetrating organs that connect to host vascular tissue. The species is almost entirely dependent on its hosts throughout its life, with only brief photosynthetic activity during germination before establishing parasitic connections. C. epithymum parasitizes a wide range of host species including clover (Trifolium), gorse (Ulex), heathers (Erica, Calluna), thyme (Thymus), and other plants in open heathland, grassland, and scrub habitats. The stems are thread-like, yellowish-pink or reddish, and support clusters of small white to pale pink flowers. Originally widespread across Europe, Asia, North Africa, and the Americas, the species has declined significantly in many parts of its range due to agricultural intensification, herbicide application, grassland conversion, and loss of semi-natural heathlands. It is currently listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, reflecting population decline across its European core range. Conservation of C. epithymum requires the maintenance of unimproved, low-nutrient grasslands and heathlands that support its diverse host plant communities. The species is recorded from Africa, Europe, North America, Oceania, and South America, though populations in some regions represent introductions associated with contaminated legume seed lots.