Gemeine Binsenjungfer vs Graureiher

Lestes sponsa compared with Ardea cinerea

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Gemeine Binsenjungfer	Graureiher
Kingdom same	Animalia (Tier)	Animalia (Tier)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Gliederfüßer)	Chordata (Chordatiere)
Class	Insecta (Insekten)	Aves (Vögel)
Order	Odonata (Libellen)	Pelecaniformes (Pelecaniformes)
Family	Lestidae	Ardeidae
Genus	Lestes	Ardea
Species	Lestes sponsa	Ardea cinerea

Evolutionary Relationship

Gemeine Binsenjungfer and Graureiher share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Tier)

Conservation Status

Gemeine Binsenjungfer

LC — Least Concern

Graureiher

LC — Least Concern

Trend: Stable →

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Gemeine Binsenjungfer	Graureiher
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	15 years
Average Length	—	95 cm
Average Weight	—	1.5 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Gemeine Binsenjungfer

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

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

Graureiher

Habitat

Typically found in diverse ecosystems where prey species are available.

Range

Found across Europe (6 countries).

Gemeine Binsenjungfer

Common Spreadwing (Lestes sponsa) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

Graureiher

A large, elegant wading bird reaching up to 1 meter in height, gray herons inhabit wetlands, rivers, lakes, and coastal areas across Europe, Asia, and Africa. Patient, solitary hunters, they stand motionless for long periods before striking fish, frogs, and small mammals with lightning-fast dagger bill strikes. They nest colonially in tall trees in rookeries called heronries, sometimes shared with other colonial waterbirds. Widely distributed and of Least Concern globally.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 5 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇱🇺 Luxembourg 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden