Arctic willow vs Canadian beaver

Salix arctica compared with Castor canadensis

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Arctic willow	Canadian beaver
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Malpighiales (Malpighiales)	Rodentia (Rodents)
Family	Salicaceae	Castoridae (Beavers)
Genus	Salix	Castor (Beavers)
Species	Salix arctica	Castor canadensis

Conservation Status

Arctic willow

NE — Not Evaluated

Canadian beaver

NE — Not Evaluated

Population: ~15.0M

Trend: Stable →

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Arctic willow	Canadian beaver
Diet	—	Herbivore
Average Lifespan	—	15 years
Average Length	—	1.0 m
Average Weight	—	25.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Arctic willow

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Canada, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden.

Canadian beaver

Habitat

Typically found in grasslands, forests, and vegetated habitats.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (15 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Argentina, Chile).

Arctic willow

The Arctic willow (Salix arctica) is a species in the genus Salix. Typically found in diverse terrestrial habitats from tropical forests to temperate regions.

Canadian beaver

The largest rodent in North America, Canadian beavers weigh up to 32 kg and are master ecosystem engineers inhabiting rivers, lakes, and wetlands across Canada and the northern United States. By felling trees and constructing dams up to hundreds of meters long, beavers create ponds that provide habitat for hundreds of species. Their lodges and canals transform entire watersheds. Once nearly hunted to extinction for their fur, beaver populations have recovered strongly.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 2 countries:

🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden