Living Beings

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    Source-identified Pteridium aquilinum; Source-identified documentary image; see the original file for method and context.

    Common Bracken

    Pteridium aquilinum

    Source-identified Loxodonta africana; Documentary organism photograph; source identification retained.

    African Savanna Elephant

    Loxodonta africana

    Pteridium aquilinum 153931398.jpg · Resized and converted to WebP for display. Source-identified documentary image; see the original file for method and context. Michel Langeveld · CC BY-SA 4.0

    African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana), Masai Mara.jpg · Resized and converted to WebP for display. Documentary organism photograph; source identification retained. Hobbyfotowiki · CC0

    How to compare two organisms

    Choose two species and trace their closest shared group. Then compare a trait with the same definition on each side. Check the units, life stage and context before interpreting a measurement or range.

    Missing data means that the collection lacks a sourced value. Where a characteristic does not apply to a lineage, the comparison labels it separately. Open the two profiles for context and follow their sources before drawing a conclusion.

    Evidence from the profiles

    Compare their characteristics

    TraitCommon BrackenAfrican Savanna Elephant
    Physical traitsMature fronds have a broad, roughly triangular outline and are divided repeatedly into smaller segments. Upright stalks arise from underground rhizomes. Spore-producing structures occur along the margins of fertile fronds; a single visible frond represents only part of the plant.Broad ears, a long trunk and column-like legs give the animal its familiar outline. The trunk tip has two finger-like projections. Both sexes can develop tusks.
    Habitat and rangeBracken occupies open woodland, clearings, rough grassland and disturbed sites. British ecological studies describe substantial frond cover where growing conditions and disturbance permit. Soil moisture, exposure and the below-ground system influence the structure of a stand.Savannas and open woodland provide a shifting mixture of browse, grass, shade and drinking water. Seasonal water availability influences the places that herds use.
    Diet and nutritionThe green fronds obtain carbon through photosynthesis. Rhizomes store resources and supply emerging shoots, linking a new season's growth with reserves accumulated earlier. Bracken is not a flowering plant: its reproductive structures and seasonal resource stores have to be understood in the context of a fern life cycle.Grasses, leaves, bark and other plant material make up its diet. The trunk gathers food and moves it to the mouth.
    Behavior and activityGrowth is expressed as repeated emergence of fronds from the rhizome system. Rapid canopy development changes the light reaching the ground. Underground growth can survive the loss of visible fronds and supply renewed growth after disturbance.Female relatives and their young form long-lasting social groups. Older females hold knowledge of familiar routes and resources; adult males have a different pattern of association.
    Reproduction and life cycleSpores develop into a small, separate gametophyte generation. Fertilization starts the new sporophyte that becomes the large fern. Vegetative spread through rhizomes also extends established stands, independently of establishment from spores.Calves are born alive and depend on milk and extended social care. Learning from other elephants is an important part of growing up.
    Geographic distributionKew's current Plants of the World Online treatment gives the accepted species a native range in Macaronesia, northern and northeastern tropical Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and Europe eastward to Siberia and Iran. This is narrower than older statements that bracken is nearly worldwide. Occurrences assigned to other Pteridium species are not silently combined here, and this summary is not a specimen-level distribution map.Native to sub-Saharan Africa. This account follows the savanna-elephant species concept rather than treating all African elephants as one species.
    Ecological roleDense fronds and accumulated litter affect the establishment of neighboring vegetation. The British flora account identifies stored rhizome resources, rapid spring growth and canopy development as important components of competitive ability. Their effects vary with environment and management.Feeding and movement alter vegetation, and dung transfers seeds and nutrients. Habitat fragmentation and killing for ivory threaten populations.
    Distinctive adaptationsProtected underground reserves support recovery after above-ground disturbance. Rhizome growth and seasonal frond production allow a stand to persist even when individual fronds are short-lived. The connection between stored reserves and new shoots is central to this growth strategy.Data unavailable
    ConservationNo global threat category is assigned in this profile. Local management often concerns the persistence and dominance of stands. Range and management records must be matched to the species concept used in the regional flora.Data unavailable

    Classification

    Shared ancestry

    Closest shared taxon: Eukaryota.

    1. LifeLife
    2. DomainEukaryota
    kingdomViridiplantaephylumStreptophytaclassPolypodiopsidaorderPolypodialesfamilyDennstaedtiaceaegenusPteridiumspeciesPteridium aquilinum
    kingdomAnimaliaphylumChordataclassMammaliaorderProboscideafamilyElephantidaegenusLoxodontaspeciesLoxodonta africana
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