31 Examples of Animals With Fur (A to Z List with Pictures)

Animals with fur include Beaver, Black Bear, Caribou, Chinchilla, and Coyote.

The three main types of fur are guard hairs, underfur, and apocrine sweat glands (which produce oily secretions). Guard hairs cover the body. They make up the top layer of the coat and act as a shield against rain or sunlight.

Underfur is what keeps many animals warm, like insulation in a household’s heat inside. It is composed of soft hairs that are closest to the animal’s skin. Finally, apocrine sweat glands produce oily secretions at the base of guard hairs.

Examples of Animals With Fur

1. Beaver

The beaver’s fur is well adapted to its semi-aquatic lifestyle. It has guard hairs, which are coarse outer hairs that protect the beavers’ underfur (the hair closest to their skin). The guard hairs also repel water and trap air bubbles next to the skin that acts as insulation.

Read Also: Platypus vs Beaver

2. Black Bear

The black bear’s fur is made up of both guard hairs and underfur. The long, coarse guard hairs protect the black bears’ underfur (which consists of very thin, soft hairs) from rain and snow. Without their insulating layer of fur, black bears would quickly lose body heat to cold weather.

3. Caribou

The caribou also produces a combination of guard hairs and underfur. These help the caribou insulate from varying temperatures in its environment, from -40 to 32 degrees Celsius.

Related Article: Do Caribou Have Cloven Hooves?

4. Chinchilla

The chinchilla is native to South America. Its dense fur keeps it warm in cold climates, much like the polar bear’s fur does. The chinchilla’s fur consists of both guard hairs and underfur, which are covered by a very thick layer of soft wool-like fur.

5. Coyote

The coyote’s fur is a mix of guard hairs and underfur. This gives the coyotes a denser coat than if they were solely covered in guard hairs. The main purpose for this type of fur seems to be keeping the coyote warm during winter months, as well as camouflaging it from potential predators.

6. Deer

Deer have coats of fur consisting entirely of guard hairs. Their long, branching antlers are actually covered in a thin layer of skin called velvet. This velvet is full of tiny blood vessels that help nourish the growing antlers.

The deer coat sheds in the spring to make room for the summer coat, which is much lighter colored and shorter.

7. Ermine

Ermines are the only species of weasel that have fur that turns white in winter, instead of just being darker than usual. They do this by regulating their body temperature. Ermines live in cold climates, so they require a lot of insulation to stay warm.

8. Fisher

The fisher has two types of fur. The top layer is made up of long, coarse guard hairs that are waterproof and provide insulation against the cold. The bottom layer is made up of thick, soft underfur that traps air close to the fisher’s skin for insulation.

9. Fox

Foxes have two kinds of fur: guard hairs and underfur. The guard hairs are responsible for giving the fox its reddish-brown coloration. The fox’s thick, coarse guard hairs protect it from harm by repel water and dirt, camouflage the fox among trees and grasses, and defend against insects.

10. Grey Wolf

In the grey wolf, guard hairs protect their underfur from rain and snow. The guard hairs also help to repel moisture as the wolves travel through wet terrain. In winter months, many of these guard hairs become covered by a layer of white fur called “winter fur” or “wool”.

11. Grizzly Bear

The grizzly bear’s fur is not very dense compared to other bears’. This allows the wind to blow through their fur, which helps them stay cool. Their guard hairs are hollow, so they can trap air bubbles next to the skin for insulation against both hot and cold weather conditions.

12. Hare

The hare’s coat is very thick. It has underfur, which protects the hares’ bodies from cold weather and it also acts as insulation to keep them warm. The hare’s fur also has guard hairs that act as camouflage by making the hare harder to see in its surroundings.

13. Jackal

The jackal is mostly covered in fur. Its coat is yellow and brown, with black on the muzzle and legs. Fur covers their entire body, including the backs of their ears. This trait allows them to survive in a wide range of climates from deserts to grasslands to forests.

14. Leopard

The leopard’s fur is covered with many dark spots, which help it blend in with the trees and bushes where it lives. Its skin underneath its fur is black or very dark brown so that it can absorb heat easily. The leopard has thick guard hairs to protect its underfur.

15. Lynx

The lynx is covered in both guard hairs and underfur. The long, coarse guard hairs keep the very light, soft underfur dry. The downy hair closest to the skin traps a layer of insulating air close to their body. This helps the lynx survive in cold weather.

16. Marten

The marten’s fur is made up of both guard hairs and underfur. The long, coarse guard hairs protect the martens’ very thin underfur from rain and snow. Without their insulating layer of fur, martens would quickly lose body heat to cold weather.

17. Mink

The mink’s coat is made of both guard hairs and underfur. The guard hair layer traps a layer of air next to the mink’s body, which acts as insulation from the cold weather they live in. Without this insulating shield, the mink would quickly succumb to the cold.

18. Moose

The moose has both guard hairs and underfur to keep it warm in the winter. Mooses’ fur gets thicker each winter until their coat weighs almost half as much as they do! This extra insulation helps them survive in cold climates.

19. Nutria

Thanks to their dense underfur, nutria can withstand harsh winters. Their fur’s softness also makes nutria valuable in the clothing industry.

20. Ocelot

The ocelot’s fur is made up of both guard hairs and underfur. The short, coarse outer layer of the coat protects the ocelot from water and extreme temperatures. Underneath its longer, more dense underfur, the ocelot has a very thin layer that keeps it warm in cold weather.

21. Possum

While all possums have underfur, not all of them have guard hairs. The Virginia opossum has both, which protect it from the elements and help to retain its body heat.

22. Rabbit

The rabbit is an example of a mammal that has fur to keep it warm. Their soft underfur, made up of very thin hairs, traps air close to their body and keeps them insulated from the cold. In addition, their guard hairs help protect the rabbit from dirt and moisture.

23. Raccoon

The raccoon’s fur is made up of both guard hairs and underfur. The long, coarse guard hairs protect the raccoon from rain and snow. The raccoon’s coat also includes a layer of soft underfur that keeps them dry in wet weather. Without this layer of fur, they would quickly lose body heat in cold weather.

24. Red Fox

The red fox has dense, thick fur that protects it from the cold. The guard hairs are long and coarse, repelling water and acting as a shield against the sun’s rays. The light hairs closest to its skin insulate the red fox by trapping air bubbles that act like an extra layer of clothing.

25. River Otter

The river otter’s fur is made up of soft, dense underfur covered by longer guard hairs. The underfur traps air that acts as insulation from cold water and the sun. In addition to warmth, the long, coarse guard hairs also protect the river otter’s fur from abrasion and keep it waterproof.

26. Sable

The sable’s fur consists of both guard hairs and underfur. Guard hairs protect the sables’ very fine underfur from rain and snow and insulates them from cold weather. Without their protective coat, sables would not be able to survive in colder climates.

27. Sea Otter

The sea otter is extremely buoyant due to its thick layer of fur. This fur not only keeps the sea otter warm, but also provides an extra layer of protection against predators.

28. Seal

It may not look like it, but seals actually have two layers of fur: underfur and guard hairs. The outer layer, the guard hairs, is made up of long, stiff bristles that protect the seals from water. Underneath these guard hairs is a waterproof layer of soft underfur.

29. Skunk

The skunk has a black and white coat that serves as both camouflage and protection from predators. It has two layers of fur: coarse guard hairs on top to shield the skunk’s underfur from rain, dirt, and sunlight; and a thick layer of soft underfur closest to its skin.

30. Squirrel

The squirrel has a thick coat of both guard hairs and underfur. The prickly outer layer of the coat, made up of coarse guard hairs, protect the animal’s soft underfur from water that could seep into its skin. A thicker layer of fur insulates the warm air close to their body.

31. Stoat

The stoat (a kind of weasel) has both guard hairs and underfur. The longer, coarse outer hairs act as a shield to keep rain off the shorter, woolly underfur.

Like many other animals with fur, the stoat’s coat is thicker in winter than it is in summer, which provides extra warmth during cold winters.

Garreth

Hi, I’m Garreth. Living in South Africa I’ve had the pleasure of seeing most of these animals up close and personal. When I was younger I always wanted to be a game ranger but unfortunately, life happens and now at least I get to write about them and tell you my experiences.