真海豚 vs Clover Dodder

Delphinus delphis compared with Cuscuta epithymum

Key Differences

真海豚 is Least Concern while Clover Dodder is Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	真海豚	Clover Dodder
Kingdom	Animalia (动物界)	Plantae (植物)
Phylum	Chordata (脊索动物门)	Magnoliophyta (木兰植物门)
Class	Mammalia (哺乳動物)	Magnoliopsida (木兰纲)
Order	Cetacea (Whales & Dolphins)	Solanales (茄目)
Family	Delphinidae (Oceanic Dolphins)	Convolvulaceae
Genus	Delphinus	Cuscuta
Species	Delphinus delphis	Cuscuta epithymum

Conservation Status

真海豚

LC — Least Concern

Clover Dodder

EN — Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	真海豚	Clover Dodder
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

真海豚

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (Taiwan), Europe (6 countries), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela).

Clover Dodder

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, montane grasslands and shrublands, and Mediterranean forests and woodlands, among 8 distinct biome types spanning the Afrotropic and Neotropic and Palearctic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (South Africa), Europe (9 countries), North America (Canada, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia), and South America (Argentina, Venezuela). Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

真海豚

大西洋斑纹海豚（Stenella frontalis）是一种中等体型的海豚，分布于热带和温暖的温带大西洋海域。该物种保护状态为无危（LC），以其体侧的白色斑纹和活泼的行为著称，常与渔船伴游。

Clover Dodder

Clover dodder (Cuscuta epithymum) is a parasitic flowering plant in the family Convolvulaceae, a leafless, twining vine that obtains all its water and nutrients from host plants via haustoria — specialized penetrating organs that connect to host vascular tissue. The species is almost entirely dependent on its hosts throughout its life, with only brief photosynthetic activity during germination before establishing parasitic connections. C. epithymum parasitizes a wide range of host species including clover (Trifolium), gorse (Ulex), heathers (Erica, Calluna), thyme (Thymus), and other plants in open heathland, grassland, and scrub habitats. The stems are thread-like, yellowish-pink or reddish, and support clusters of small white to pale pink flowers. Originally widespread across Europe, Asia, North Africa, and the Americas, the species has declined significantly in many parts of its range due to agricultural intensification, herbicide application, grassland conversion, and loss of semi-natural heathlands. It is currently listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, reflecting population decline across its European core range. Conservation of C. epithymum requires the maintenance of unimproved, low-nutrient grasslands and heathlands that support its diverse host plant communities. The species is recorded from Africa, Europe, North America, Oceania, and South America, though populations in some regions represent introductions associated with contaminated legume seed lots.