Coastal Silver-stiletto vs breitwartige Fadenschnecke

Acrosathe annulata compared with Aeolidia papillosa

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Coastal Silver-stiletto	breitwartige Fadenschnecke
Kingdom same	Animalia (Tier)	Animalia (Tier)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Gliederfüßer)	Mollusca (Weichtiere)
Class	Insecta (Insekten)	Gastropoda (Schnecken)
Order	Diptera (Zweiflügler)	Nudibranchia (Nacktkiemer)
Family	Therevidae	Aeolidiidae
Genus	Acrosathe	Aeolidia
Species	Acrosathe annulata	Aeolidia papillosa

Evolutionary Relationship

Coastal Silver-stiletto and breitwartige Fadenschnecke share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Tier)

Conservation Status

Coastal Silver-stiletto

LC — Least Concern

breitwartige Fadenschnecke

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Coastal Silver-stiletto	breitwartige Fadenschnecke
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Coastal Silver-stiletto

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

breitwartige Fadenschnecke

Habitat

Typically found in terrestrial and aquatic habitats including forests and freshwater.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Chile, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

Coastal Silver-stiletto

Coastal silver stiletto (Acrosathe annulata) is a slender robber fly in the family Therevidae, native to northwestern Europe, including the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Scandinavia. Adults are found on coastal sand dunes and sandy heathland, where they perch on bare sand to ambush small flying insects. Stiletto flies in the family Therevidae are characterised by a slender body, long pointed abdomen, and predatory habits; adults prey on a variety of small dipterans and other flying insects during warm, sunny periods. Larvae develop in sandy soil, where they are also predatory, feeding on other invertebrate larvae. Acrosathe annulata is a habitat specialist restricted to open, sandy coastal habitats with sparse vegetation—environments that have declined substantially across northwestern Europe due to dune stabilisation, recreational disturbance, and the cessation of traditional dune management. The IUCN lists it as Least Concern, though regional conservation bodies in the United Kingdom have flagged population declines. It is considered an indicator of high-quality coastal sand dune habitats and is monitored through national invertebrate surveys.

breitwartige Fadenschnecke

<em>Aeolidia papillosa</em>, commonly known as the common grey sea slug, is a nudibranch mollusc belonging to the genus Aeolidia within the family Aeolidiidae. Despite the species name referencing terrestrial and aquatic habitats including forests and freshwater, <em>Aeolidia papillosa</em> is primarily a marine organism. Its range includes Belgium, Chile, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, indicating a distribution across the North Atlantic and into South American waters. Common grey sea slug is assessed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. The species is typically found in intertidal and subtidal zones, where it preys on sea anemones and stores stinging cells from its prey in its dorsal cerata for defense. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

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