Coiled Cassia vs Lǎohǔ

Senna circinnata compared with Panthera tigris

Key Differences

Coiled Cassia is Least Concern while Lǎohǔ is Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Coiled Cassia	Lǎohǔ
Kingdom	Plantae (植物)	Animalia (动物界)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (木兰植物门)	Chordata (脊索动物门)
Class	Magnoliopsida (木兰纲)	Mammalia (哺乳動物)
Order	Fabales (豆目)	Carnivora (食肉目)
Family	Fabaceae	Felidae (Cats)
Genus	Senna	Panthera (Big Cats)
Species	Senna circinnata	Panthera tigris

Conservation Status

Coiled Cassia

LC — Least Concern

Lǎohǔ

EN — Endangered

Population: ~4.5K

Trend: Increasing ↑

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Coiled Cassia	Lǎohǔ
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	20 years
Average Length	—	3.0 m
Average Weight	—	220.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Coiled Cassia

Habitat

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

Lǎohǔ

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 6 distinct biome types spanning the Neotropic and Oceanian realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Distributed across Colombia and Ecuador. Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Coiled Cassia

The Coiled Cassia (Senna circinnata) is a shrubby legume in the family Fabaceae, native to inland arid and semi-arid regions of Australia, particularly the mulga woodlands and shrublands of Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia, and the Northern Territory. The common name 'coiled cassia' refers to the distinctive spirally coiled seed pods that develop after flowering—a morphological feature unique among Australian Senna species and immediately recognisable in the field. Plants typically grow 0.5–2 metres tall, with pinnate leaves and bright yellow flowers characteristic of the genus Senna. Like other acacias and legumes in arid Australian landscapes, Senna circinnata contributes to nitrogen fixation in nutrient-poor desert soils through root nodule symbiosis with rhizobia bacteria, benefiting the broader plant community. The species is drought-tolerant and well-adapted to the seasonal rainfall and thin soils of inland Australia, regenerating vigorously after fire and disturbance. It is assessed as Least Concern by the IUCN given its stable populations across a wide extent of occurrence within Australia's arid interior. Coiled Cassia provides browse for kangaroos and other herbivores and cover for small reptiles and birds in shrubland habitats.