Common cattle grub vs gray wolf

Hypoderma lineatum compared with Canis lupus

Key Differences

• Common cattle grub is Extinct while gray wolf is Critically Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common cattle grub	gray wolf
Kingdom same	Animalia (hewan)	Animalia (hewan)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Artropoda)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Insecta (serangga)	Mammalia (mamalia)
Order	Diptera (lalat)	Carnivora (Carnivorans)
Family	Oestridae	Canidae (Dogs & Wolves)
Genus	Hypoderma	Canis (Dogs & Wolves)
Species	Hypoderma lineatum	Canis lupus

Evolutionary Relationship

Common cattle grub and gray wolf share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (hewan)

Conservation Status

Common cattle grub

EX — Extinct

gray wolf

CR — Critically Endangered

Population: ~300.0K

Trend: Stable →

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common cattle grub	gray wolf
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	13 years
Average Length	—	1.6 m
Average Weight	—	45.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common cattle grub

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Japan, Norway, Sweden, and United States.

gray wolf

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, deserts and xeric shrublands, and tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, among 13 distinct biome types. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Seychelles), Asia (Japan), Europe (5 countries), North America (7 countries), Oceania and the Pacific (Marshall Islands, Vanuatu), and South America (5 countries). Currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Common cattle grub

<em>Hypoderma lineatum</em>, commonly known as the common cattle grub, is a parasitic fly species with documented occurrences in Japan, Norway, Sweden, and the United States. It typically inhabited terrestrial and freshwater environments, often associated with cattle and other large ungulates on which its larvae develop as subcutaneous parasites. The species is classified as Extinct on the IUCN Red List, indicating that it is no longer known to exist in the wild. Common cattle grub belongs to the genus <em>Hypoderma</em> within the family Oestridae. Adult flies do not feed and are short-lived, while larvae burrow under the skin of host animals, causing a condition known as hypodermosis or warble fly infestation. The decline and extinction of this species has been linked to widespread and highly effective veterinary treatment programs targeting warble fly larvae in cattle, which drastically reduced host populations and ultimately eliminated the species. Biological traits such as average lifespan, body length, and mass of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.

gray wolf

The most widely distributed wild canid, gray wolves range from North America across Eurasia in diverse habitats including tundra, forests, and grasslands. Highly social animals living in family packs led by a dominant breeding pair. As keystone predators, wolves regulate prey populations and profoundly shape ecosystem structure, as demonstrated by their reintroduction in Yellowstone. Once heavily persecuted, populations are recovering in many regions.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

🇯🇵 Japan 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇺🇸 United States