Eurasian beaver vs Northern Dusky Slug

Castor fiber compared with Arion fuscus

Key Differences

• Eurasian beaver is Vulnerable while Northern Dusky Slug is Data Deficient.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Eurasian beaver	Northern Dusky Slug
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Mollusca (Mollusks)
Class	Mammalia (Mammals)	Gastropoda (Gastropoda)
Order	Rodentia (Rodents)	Stylommatophora (Stylommatophora)
Family	Castoridae (Beavers)	Arionidae
Genus	Castor (Beavers)	Arion
Species	Castor fiber	Arion fuscus

Evolutionary Relationship

Eurasian beaver and Northern Dusky Slug share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

Eurasian beaver

VU — Vulnerable

Northern Dusky Slug

DD — Data Deficient

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Eurasian beaver	Northern Dusky Slug
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Eurasian beaver

Habitat

Typically found in diverse terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Range

Found across Europe (6 countries). Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Northern Dusky Slug

Habitat

Typically found in terrestrial and aquatic habitats including forests and freshwater.

Range

Found across Europe (7 countries).

Eurasian beaver

Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) is classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List. Facing a high risk of endangerment in the wild, with declining populations and increasing habitat pressure.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇸🇪 Sweden