Coastal Silver-stiletto vs Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin

Acrosathe annulata compared with Tursiops aduncus

Key Differences

• Coastal Silver-stiletto is Least Concern while Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Coastal Silver-stiletto	Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin
Kingdom same	Animalia (животные)	Animalia (животные)
Phylum	Arthropoda (членистоногие)	Chordata (хордовые)
Class	Insecta (насекомые)	Mammalia (млекопитающие)
Order	Diptera (двукрылые)	Cetacea (Whales & Dolphins)
Family	Therevidae	Delphinidae (Oceanic Dolphins)
Genus	Acrosathe	Tursiops (Bottlenose Dolphins)
Species	Acrosathe annulata	Tursiops aduncus

Evolutionary Relationship

Coastal Silver-stiletto and Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (животные)

Conservation Status

Coastal Silver-stiletto

LC — Least Concern

Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Coastal Silver-stiletto	Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Coastal Silver-stiletto

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Found in Taiwan. Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Coastal Silver-stiletto

Coastal silver stiletto (Acrosathe annulata) is a slender robber fly in the family Therevidae, native to northwestern Europe, including the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Scandinavia. Adults are found on coastal sand dunes and sandy heathland, where they perch on bare sand to ambush small flying insects. Stiletto flies in the family Therevidae are characterised by a slender body, long pointed abdomen, and predatory habits; adults prey on a variety of small dipterans and other flying insects during warm, sunny periods. Larvae develop in sandy soil, where they are also predatory, feeding on other invertebrate larvae. Acrosathe annulata is a habitat specialist restricted to open, sandy coastal habitats with sparse vegetation—environments that have declined substantially across northwestern Europe due to dune stabilisation, recreational disturbance, and the cessation of traditional dune management. The IUCN lists it as Least Concern, though regional conservation bodies in the United Kingdom have flagged population declines. It is considered an indicator of high-quality coastal sand dune habitats and is monitored through national invertebrate surveys.