What is the difference between an otter and a beaver?
a lot. a beaver is a rodent for starters while an otter is a mustelidae they live in different places, eat different things and look different. Mustelidae Lutrinae – otter – http://www.nps.gov/romo/images/resources… Castor Linnaeus – beaver – http://www.turtletrack.
Otters are Carnivora Mustilids, Beavers are Rodents. The fundamental difference between carnivores and rodents is the teeth. By definition, rodents have one pair of large incisors that grow throughout the mammal’s life on the upper and lower jaws. http://www.flickr.com/photos/atomicplayb… Carnivores have a very different tooth pattern, with pairs of sharp canines on upper and lower jaws, suited for eating meat. http://www.skullsunlimited.
The otter is a carnivore (order carnivora) and beavers are rodents (order rodenta). Both are semiaquatic mammals which often live together in northern forests. Unlike the beaver, there are several other species of otters, the largest being the giant otter which lives in the tropics. Otters eat fish they catch and often live in small groups. Beavers mate for life and eat the bark of trees along with some water plants. Beavers are well known to construct dams and lodges using timber they have cut with their large incisors. Otters dig burrows to raise young but outside the breeding season, otters are nomadic and have no permenant lair.
