African elephant vs Small-leaf climbing fern

Loxodonta africana compared with Lygodium microphyllum

Key Differences

African elephant is Vulnerable while Small-leaf climbing fern is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	African elephant	Small-leaf climbing fern
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Plantae (plantas)
Phylum	Chordata (cordados)	Tracheophyta
Class	Mammalia (mamíferos)	Polypodiopsida (Polypodiopsida)
Order	Proboscidea (Elephants)	Schizaeales (Schizaeales)
Family	Elephantidae (Elephants)	Lygodiaceae
Genus	Loxodonta (African Elephants)	Lygodium
Species	Loxodonta africana	Lygodium microphyllum

Conservation Status

African elephant

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~415.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Small-leaf climbing fern

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	African elephant	Small-leaf climbing fern
Diet	Herbivore	—
Average Lifespan	65 years	—
Average Length	6.0 m	—
Average Weight	6.0 t	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

African elephant

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, and flooded grasslands and savannas, among 5 distinct biome types within the Afrotropic biogeographic realm. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Found in Kenya. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Small-leaf climbing fern

Habitat

Typically found in moist, shaded forest floors and tropical canopies.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Angola, Guinea), Asia (Taiwan), North America (United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Micronesia, Palau, Solomon Islands), and South America (Guyana).

African elephant

O elefante africano, o maior animal terrestre da Terra, pode atingir 7.000 kg e habita savanas, florestas e zonas húmidas da África subsaariana. Com estruturas sociais complexas lideradas por matriarcas, comunica através de infrassons, rugidos e contacto físico. Como engenheiro do ecossistema, modela o habitat arrancando árvores, escavando poços de água e dispersando sementes. Está classificado como Vulnerável (VU), com populações em declínio devido à caça furtiva de marfim e à perda de habitat.