Asiatic elephant vs river moss

Elephas maximus compared with Fontinalis hypnoides

Key Differences

• Asiatic elephant is Endangered while river moss is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Asiatic elephant	river moss
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Plantae (plantas)
Phylum	Chordata (cordados)	Bryophyta
Class	Mammalia (mamíferos)	Bryopsida (Bryopsida)
Order	Proboscidea (Elephants)	Hypnales (Hypnales)
Family	Elephantidae (Elephants)	Fontinalaceae
Genus	Elephas (Asian Elephants)	Fontinalis
Species	Elephas maximus	Fontinalis hypnoides

Conservation Status

Asiatic elephant

EN — Endangered

Population: ~50.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

river moss

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Asiatic elephant	river moss
Diet	Herbivore	—
Average Lifespan	60 years	—
Average Length	5.5 m	—
Average Weight	4.0 t	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Asiatic elephant

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 9 distinct biome types spanning the Australasia and Indomalayan and Palearctic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Distributed across India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

river moss

Habitat

Native to Europe and North America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

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

Asiatic elephant

O elefante-asiático (Elephas maximus) é um dos maiores animais terrestres existentes, distribuído pelo sul e sudeste da Ásia. Seu estado de conservação é em perigo (EN) devido principalmente à perda de habitat e à caça ilegal, e tem grande importância cultural e religiosa em muitas culturas asiáticas.