ヒメコンゴウインコ vs Clover Dodder

Ara severus compared with Cuscuta epithymum

Key Differences

ヒメコンゴウインコ is Least Concern while Clover Dodder is Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	ヒメコンゴウインコ	Clover Dodder
Kingdom	Animalia (動物)	Plantae (植物)
Phylum	Chordata (脊索動物)	Magnoliophyta (被子植物門)
Class	Aves (鳥類)	Magnoliopsida (モクレン綱)
Order	Psittaciformes (オウム目)	Solanales (ナス目)
Family	Psittacidae (True Parrots)	Convolvulaceae
Genus	Ara (Macaws)	Cuscuta
Species	Ara severus	Cuscuta epithymum

Conservation Status

ヒメコンゴウインコ

LC — Least Concern

Clover Dodder

EN — Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	ヒメコンゴウインコ	Clover Dodder
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

ヒメコンゴウインコ

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (Belgium, Norway), North America (United States), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela).

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.

ヒメコンゴウインコ

メキシコ南部からボリビアおよびブラジルに至る中南米熱帯林に生息する中型マコウインコで、栗色の前頭部、赤い肩の斑点、青い風切羽を持つ主に緑色の羽毛が特徴だ。真のマコウインコの中で最小の種で、林縁、サバンナ、二次林に生息し、農作物を荒らすことも多く地元農民には不人気なこともある。人気の飼育用鳥だが、野生個体群は捕獲と森林破壊による圧力を受けている。

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.