Calamus vs Clover Dodder

Acorus calamus compared with Cuscuta epithymum

Key Differences

• Calamus is Least Concern while Clover Dodder is Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Calamus	Clover Dodder
Kingdom same	Plantae (植物)	Plantae (植物)
Phylum same	Magnoliophyta (被子植物門)	Magnoliophyta (被子植物門)
Class	Liliopsida (単子葉植物綱)	Magnoliopsida (モクレン綱)
Order	Acorales (Acorales)	Solanales (ナス目)
Family	Acoraceae	Convolvulaceae
Genus	Acorus	Cuscuta
Species	Acorus calamus	Cuscuta epithymum

Evolutionary Relationship

Calamus and Clover Dodder share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Magnoliophyta. (被子植物門)

Conservation Status

Calamus

LC — Least Concern

Clover Dodder

EN — Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Calamus	Clover Dodder
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Calamus

Habitat

Inhabits tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests and tropical and subtropical coniferous forests within the Indomalayan biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (South Africa), Asia (5 countries), Europe (30 countries), and North America (Canada, United States).

Clover Dodder

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.

Calamus

The Calamus (Acorus calamus) is a species in the genus Acorus. It is currently classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Inhabits tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests and tropical and subtropical coniferous forests within the Indomalayan biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Clover Dodder

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.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 11 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇧🇬 Bulgaria 🇨🇦 Canada 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇫🇮 Finland 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇱 Poland 🇸🇰 Slovakia 🇿🇦 South Africa 🇸🇪 Sweden 🇺🇸 United States