Difference Between Hair And Fur
Hair
Hair, a slender, threadlike outgrowth of the skin of a mammal. Some lizards, insects, and plants have hairlike projections, but they are not considered true hairs. Its not necessary that all hair can be used as fur.
Although all mammals have hair, its type and distribution vary greatly among different species. Whales, for example, are nearly hairless although some have a few coarse stubbly hairs around the mouth, while most other mammals are almost entirely covered with a dense coat of hair. In many mammals, different types of hair are found on different parts of the body. In man, for example, hairs of the scalp, arm, eyebrow, and public region differ in length, color, coarseness, or waviness. Two interesting modifications of hair in other animals are the stiff quills of a porcupine and the horn of a rhinoceros, which is actually a dense tuft of fused hairs.
Fur
Fur, the soft, thick, hairy coat or the haired skin of a mammal. A fur can be defined as an animal skin with hair or fur fibers, either in its unprocessed or processed state, that is not to be transformed for leather. A “fur product” is an article of wearing apparel made partly or wholly of fur, except where the fur is of little value or used in relatively small quantities. Thus, a bearskin rug and low-quality sheepskin earmuffs are not fur products.
The haired skin of a mammal, known as a pelt, commonly consists of an undercoat of short, soft hairs, called fur fiber, and an outer coat of longer, smoother, stiffer hairs, called hair covering or guard hairs. Most furbearers of commercial importance—for example, minks, sables, beavers, muskrats, rabbits—have both a hair and fur covering. A second type, represented by the pony and colobus monkey, has only a hair covering. A third type of pelt, whose covering is wool-like, is found in the Karakul lamb and similar animals.