Common Seal vs marsh thistle

Phoca vitulina compared with Cirsium palustre

Key Differences

Common Seal is Near Threatened while marsh thistle is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Seal	marsh thistle
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Plantae (plantas)
Phylum	Chordata (cordados)	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)
Class	Mammalia (mamíferos)	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)
Order	Pinnipedia (Seals & Sea Lions)	Asterales (Daisies & Sunflowers)
Family	Phocidae (True Seals)	Asteraceae (Daisy Family)
Genus	Phoca (Harbor Seals)	Cirsium
Species	Phoca vitulina	Cirsium palustre

Conservation Status

Common Seal

NT — Near Threatened

Population: ~500.0K

Trend: Stable →

marsh thistle

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Seal	marsh thistle
Diet	Carnivore	—
Average Lifespan	30 years	—
Average Length	1.7 m	—
Average Weight	80.0 kg	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common Seal

Habitat

Typically found in diverse ecosystems where prey species are available.

Range

Found across Europe (7 countries) and North America (United States). Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

marsh thistle

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (8 countries), North America (Canada, United States), and Oceania and the Pacific (New Zealand).

Common Seal

O pinípede de distribuição mais ampla, a foca-comum (Phoca vitulina) habita as costas temperadas e subárticas do Atlântico Norte e do Pacífico Norte. Os adultos atingem até 130 kg e passam tempo aproximadamente igual no mar caçando peixes, lulas e crustáceos e descansando em praias ou rochas. Seus grandes e expressivos olhos são adaptados para a visão subaquática em pouca luz. A foca-comum é uma fonte de alimento fundamental para orcas, tubarões e ursos-polares.