Canadian beaver vs Common Grey Disco

Castor canadensis compared with Mollisia cinerea

Key Differences

• Canadian beaver is Not Evaluated while Common Grey Disco is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Canadian beaver	Common Grey Disco
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Leotiomycetes (Leotiomycetes)
Order	Rodentia (Rodents)	Helotiales (Helotiales)
Family	Castoridae (Beavers)	Mollisiaceae
Genus	Castor (Beavers)	Mollisia
Species	Castor canadensis	Mollisia cinerea

Conservation Status

Canadian beaver

NE — Not Evaluated

Population: ~15.0M

Trend: Stable →

Common Grey Disco

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Canadian beaver	Common Grey Disco
Diet	Herbivore	—
Average Lifespan	15 years	—
Average Length	1.0 m	—
Average Weight	25.0 kg	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

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).

Common Grey Disco

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden.

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.

Common Grey Disco

<em>Mollisia cinerea</em>, commonly known as the common grey disco, is a saprotrophic fungus belonging to the genus Mollisia within the family Mollisiaceae. This species is native to Europe, with a documented range spanning Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden. Common grey disco is assessed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. The species typically produces small, disc-shaped ascocarps with a grey to brownish-grey upper surface, typically emerging on decaying wood and plant debris in moist woodland habitats. As a decomposer, it plays an important ecological role in nutrient cycling within temperate forest ecosystems. Biological traits of this species remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇸🇪 Sweden