Category Similarities and Differences

What is the difference between a barbel and a whisker on a fish?

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What is the difference between a barbel and a whisker on a fish?

Catfish and carp have barbels. 

Some people call the barbels whiskers, but they are not whiskers.

A barbel is a structure at each edge of the mouth of a carp and catfish. It can be long or short.

A carp has two barbels – one on each side of its mouth.

A catfish has several pairs of barbels – on each side of its face. 

Each barbel has taste buds on it, as well as smell sensors.  

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What’s the difference between the Emerald Tree Boa and the Green Tree Python?

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What is the difference between the Emerald Tree Boa (Corallus caninus) and the Green Tree Python (Morelia viridis)?

The Emerald Tree Boa and the Green Tree Python are both non-venomous arboreal (tree) reptiles and snakes.

The Emerald Tree Boa and the Green Tree Python are bright green with yellowish underbellies. 

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What are the similarities between the Alexandrine Parakeet and the Rose-Ringed Parakeet?

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What are the similarities between the Alexandrine Parakeet (Psitacula eupatria) and the Rose-Ringed Parakeet (Psittacula krameri)? 

Both the Alexandrine Parakeet and the Rose-Ringed Parakeet are Asian parrots with mainly green feathers and a thick red beak. 

The Alexandrine Parakeet has a red beak with yellow tips, whereas the Rose-Ringed Parakeet has no yellow tips on its beak.

The Alexandrine Parakeet has a red patch on its shoulder, whereas the Rose-Ringed Parakeet has no red patch on its shoulder.

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What is the difference between the Emu and the Rhea?

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What is the difference between the Emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae) and the Greater Rhea (Rhea Americana)? 

The Emu and the Greater Rhea are large fightless birds. The Emu and the Greater Rhea are both ratites, because they cannot fly (the Ostrich, Kiwi, and Cassowary are also ratites).

The Emu and the Greater Rhea have a large, soft, grey-brown feathered body, a long featherless neck, and long featherless legs with three toes.

The Emu has orange-brown eyes, whereas the Greater Rhea has blue to brown eyes.

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What are the similarities between the Alpaca, the Llama, and the Vicuna?

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What are the similarities between the Alpaca (Vicugna pacos), the Llama (Lama glama), and the Vicuna (Vicugna vicugna)? 

The Alpaca, the Llama, and the Vicuna are all ungulate (hoofed) camelid mammals. They are related to the Camel.

The Alpaca, the Llama, and the Vicuna have soft sheep-like wool. The Alpaca has the second softest wool and the Vicuna has the softest wool.

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What is the difference between a Seal and a Sea Lion?

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What is the difference between a Seal (Pusa) and a Sea Lion (Neophoca)?

A Seal and a Sea Lion are both pinnipeds – finned semi-aquatic marine mammals. A Walrus (Odobenus rosmarus) is also a pinniped. 

A Seal and a Sea Lion both have flattened heads with white whiskers. 

A Seal has short flippers that are thinly webbed with a claw on each small toe, whereas a Sea Lion has large skin-covered flippers.

On land, a Seal wriggles on its belly, whereas a Sea Lion walks on its flippers.

A Seal has no visible ear flaps (external ears), whereas a Sea Lion has visible ear flaps.

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Cat, Cheetah, Leopard, Lion, Tiger Eyes: What’s the difference?

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What are the similarities or differences between the eyes of a Cat (Felis catus), Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus), Leopard (Panthera pardus), Lion (Panthera leo), and Tiger (Panthera tigris)?

The Domestic Cat is nocturnal, active at night. The Cheeth and the Lion are diurnal, active during the day. The Leopard and the Tiger are crepuscular, active at dawn and dusk.

The eyes of a nocturnal animal have vertical pupils that look like a black line, called slitted eyes. The eyes of a diurnal or crepuscular animal have round pupils.

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What’s the difference between the Warthog and the Wild Boar?

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What is the difference between the Central African Warthog (Phacochoerus africanus massaicus) and the Central European Wild Boar (Sus scrofa scrofa)?

The Central African Warthog and the Central European Wild Boar are both medium-sized heavy-set ungulate (hoofed) mammals, but the Warthog is pig-like and the Boar is a pig.

The Central African Warthog has two pairs of upward-curving ivory tusks protruding from its mouth. One pair of tusks is the upper pair, and the second pair of tusks is the lower pair, which is shorter than the upper pair. The male Central European Wild Boar has ivory canine teeth which protrude from its mouth, and the female has smaller canine teeth.

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Fallacy: A Cuckooshrike is a cross between a Cuckoo and a Shrike

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A fallacy is something that is not true.

A Cuckooshrike is a cross between a Cuckoo and a Shrike is a fallacy. It is not true. So, what is a Cuckooshrike?

A Cuckooshrike, a Cuckoo, and a Shrike are all birds, but a Cuckooshrike is not a Cuckoo and it is not a Shrike.

It is not closely related to the Cuckoo and it is not closely related to the Shrike. They are not very similar. In fact, they are in different families.

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What is the difference between the African Leopard, the North Chinese Leopard, the Persian Leopard and the Snow Leopard?

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What is the difference between the African Leopard (Panthera pardus), the Amur Leopard (Panthera pardus orientalis), the Persian Leopard (Panthera pardus saxicolor) and the Snow Leopard (Panthera uncia)?

The African Leopard, Amur Leopard, Persian Leopard, and Snow Leopard are all solitary, elusive, large felines or wild cats. All of the leopards have pale-green or grey eyes.

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Rhinoceros look-alikes: the similarities

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The African Rhinoceros is a distinctive animal due to its thick, armoured skin and large curved horn. Rhinoceros means ‘nose with a horn.’ The critically endangered Black Rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis) is also called the Hook-Lipped Rhinoceros. The White Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) is also called the Square-Lipped Rhinoceros. Most rhinos in zoos are the Southern White Rhinoceros.

Some animals are described as ‘rhinoceros’ in their scientific or common name because they have a horn that looks like a rhinoceros horn.

The Rhino Catfish (Pterygoplichthys scrophus) from South America is a fish with a ridged, armoured body and two horn-like protrusions from its head that looks like the horns of a rhinoceros. The protrusions are actualy nostril flaps so that water doesn’t get up its nose. Its body is completely covered in small plates that look like armour.

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What is the difference between the Great Capricorn Beetle and the Rhesus Capricorn Beetle?

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What is the difference between the Great Capricorn Beetle (Cerambyx cerdo) and the Rhesus Capricorn Beetle (Dorcadion carinatum)?

The Great Capricorn Beetle and the Rhesus Capricorn Beetle are both insects in the Cerambyx family of longhorn beetles.

The Great Capricorn Beetle and the Rhesus Capricorn Beetle both have hard, protective wing cases, called elytra, that are reddish-brown at the tips.

The Great Capricorn Beetle is thinner than the Rhesus Capricorn Beetle.

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What is the difference between the African Lion and the White Lion?

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What is the difference between the African Lion and the White Lion?

The White Lion (Panthera leo) is a feline, or felid, mammal – a wild cat. It is different from the African Lion (Panthera leo leo) and the Asiatic Lion (Panthera leo persica), but it is more similar to the African Lion.

The White Lion is not albino. It is leucistic, which means that it has reduced colouring, but not complete albinism. An animal that is albino lacks colour and has pink eyes. A leucistic animal does not have pink eyes.

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What is the difference between an African Buffalo and an Asian Water Buffalo?

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What is the difference between an African Buffalo (Syncerus caffer caffer) and an Asian Water Buffalo (Bubalus bubalis)?

The African Buffalo or Cape Buffalo is not related to the Asian Water Buffalo.

The African Buffalo has an almost black coat, whereas the Asian Water Bufffalo has a blue-grey coat.

The African Buffalo has larger horns than the Asian Water Buffalo.

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What is the difference between the Brazilian Salmon Pink Bird-Eating Tarantula and the Mexican Red-Knee Tarantula?

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What is the difference between the Brazilian Salmon Pink Bird-Eating Tarantula (Lasiodora parahybana) and the Mexican Red-Knee Tarantula (Brachypelma smithii).

The Brazilian Salmon Pink Bird-Eating Tarantula and the Mexican Red-Knee Tarantula are both ground-dwelling arachnids with an exoskeleton. The male of each species has a shell on its back, called a carapace.

The male Brazilian Salmon Pink Bird-Eating Tarantula has a black carapace and the male Mexican Red-Knee Tarantula has a yellowish-brown carapace.

The Brazilian Salmon Pink Bird-Eating Tarantula has pink-red hairs along its legs and abdomen, whereas the Mexican Red-Knee Tarantula has three dark reddish-orange coloured rings on its legs.

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What are the similarities between the Burmese Python and the Rock Python?

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What are the similarities between the Burmese Python and the Rock Python?

The Burmese Python (Python bivittatus) and the Rock Python (Python sebae) are both non-venomous constrictor snakes (they squeeze their prey to death).

The Burmese Python and the Rock Python are both oviparous (egg-laying) reptiles.

The Burmese Python and the Rock Python are both dark-coloured with brown markings on their back.

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What are the similarities between the Jungle Carpet Python and the Northwestern Carpet Python?

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What are the similarities between the Jungle Carpet Python and the Northwestern Carpet Python?

The Jungle Carpet Python (Morelia spilota cheynei) and the Northwestern Carpet Python (Morelia spilota variegata) are both non-venomous constrictor snakes (they squeeze their prey to death).

The Jungle Carpet Python and the Northwestern Carpet Python are both oviparous (egg-laying) reptiles.

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What are the similarities between the Bush Stone-Curlew and the Eurasian Stone-Curlew?

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What are the similarities between the Bush Stone-Curlew (Burhinus grallarius) and the Eurasian Stone-Curlew (Burhinus oedicnemus)?

The Bush Stone-Curlew and the Eurasian Stone-Curlew are also called the Thick-Knee. They are both related to the Bustard.

The Bush Stone-Curlew and the Eurasian Stone-Curlew are both ground-dwelling, nocturnal birds.

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