Cliff Mining Bee vs Common Goldspeck

Andrena thoracica compared with Candelariella vitellina

Key Differences

• Cliff Mining Bee is Extinct while Common Goldspeck is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Cliff Mining Bee	Common Goldspeck
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum	Arthropoda (artrópode)	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)
Class	Insecta (inseto)	Candelariomycetes (Candelariomycetes)
Order	Hymenoptera (Ants, Bees & Wasps)	Candelariales (Candelariales)
Family	Andrenidae	Candelariaceae
Genus	Andrena	Candelariella
Species	Andrena thoracica	Candelariella vitellina

Conservation Status

Cliff Mining Bee

EX — Extinct

Common Goldspeck

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Cliff Mining Bee	Common Goldspeck
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Cliff Mining Bee

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Denmark, Luxembourg, Norway, and Sweden.

Common Goldspeck

Habitat

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

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (4 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Colombia).

Cliff Mining Bee

The Cliff Mining Bee, Andrena species in the family Andrenidae, is a solitary ground-nesting bee that excavates tunnels in cliff faces, earthen banks, and compacted sandy or loamy soils, where the loose or friable substrates exposed in cliff profiles provide ideal nesting conditions. Mining bees in the genus Andrena are among the most species-rich solitary bee genera in the world, with hundreds of species across the Holarctic region, many narrowly specialized in their choice of pollen host plants. Female cliff mining bees construct vertical or angled burrows in cliff faces, with lateral cells off the main shaft, each containing a pollen ball and a single egg. Males are typically smaller and emerge before females to establish territories near nesting sites. Many Andrena species are oligolectic, collecting pollen from only a small number of plant species, making their populations sensitive to the availability of specific flowering plants in the landscape surrounding nesting areas. Cliff and bank nesting habitats provide well-drained, sun-warmed substrates essential for brood development. The loss of natural cliff faces and earthen banks to development, vegetation succession, and quarrying reduces available nesting habitat for cliff mining bees.

Common Goldspeck

<em>Candelariella vitellina</em>, commonly known as common goldspeck, is a crustose lichen belonging to the genus Candelariella within the family Candelariaceae. This species inhabits ecosystems across Europe and North America and South America, reflecting a broad geographic tolerance suited to its saxicolous lifestyle. Its known range includes populations in four European countries, the United States in North America, and Colombia in South America. The species is assessed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, indicating that current population trends do not suggest elevated extinction risk. Common goldspeck typically colonizes exposed rock surfaces, bark, and other firm substrates in open environments where light availability supports its photosynthetic activity. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 3 countries:

🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden