Coastal Silver-stiletto vs Mexican Agouti

Acrosathe annulata compared with Dasyprocta mexicana

Key Differences

• Coastal Silver-stiletto is Least Concern while Mexican Agouti is Critically Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Coastal Silver-stiletto	Mexican Agouti
Kingdom same	Animalia (สัตว์)	Animalia (สัตว์)
Phylum	Arthropoda (สัตว์ขาปล้อง)	Chordata (สัตว์มีแกนสันหลัง)
Class	Insecta (แมลง)	Mammalia (สัตว์เลี้ยงลูกด้วยน้ำนม)
Order	Diptera (แมลงวัน)	Rodentia (อันดับสัตว์ฟันแทะ)
Family	Therevidae	Dasyproctidae
Genus	Acrosathe	Dasyprocta
Species	Acrosathe annulata	Dasyprocta mexicana

Evolutionary Relationship

Coastal Silver-stiletto and Mexican Agouti share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (สัตว์)

Conservation Status

Coastal Silver-stiletto

LC — Least Concern

Mexican Agouti

CR — Critically Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Coastal Silver-stiletto	Mexican Agouti
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.

Mexican Agouti

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical coniferous forests, among 5 distinct biome types within the Neotropic biogeographic realm.

Range

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

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.