The world’s gliding mammals are an extraordinary group of animals that have the ability to glide from tree to tree with seemingly effortless grace. There are more than 60 species of gliding mammals including the flying squirrels from Europe and North America, the scaly-tailed flying squirrels from central Africa and the gliding possums of Australia and New Guinea.
Order: Rodentia
Family: Sciuridae, Pteromyini
Description: A medium-sized flying squirrel. Its upper parts range in colour from grey to drab brown, depending on whether the hairs are tipped with whitish or brown. It has creamy white underparts and a whitish mark behind the ears.
Its tail is flattened underneath, but only slightly flattened above, dark grey or drab brown, or a mixture with the brownish colour at the base and along the sides. This species is larger than the Red-cheeked Flying Squirrel and smaller than the Particolored Flying Squirrel.
Distribution: Occurs in Burma, western Thailand south to Phetburi Province, northern Laos, north-west Vietnam, and Guizhou, Guangxi and Fujian Provinces in southern China.
A second subspecies occurs on Hainan Island, China. Its habitat has been reported from partly cleared forest near cultivation at an elevation of 1000 metres.
Reproduction: Nothing is known.
Diet: Known to forage on cultivated fruit at night.
Ecology: Little is known of the ecology except that it nests in hollow trees during the day.
Status: Least Concern.
| HB | 144–197 mm |
| TL | 128–174 mm |
| HF | 30–36 mm |
| M | 153–189 g |
Hylopetes phayrei phayrei — Burma, north-western Thailand south to Phetburi Province, Laos, Vietnam, and Guizhou, Guangxi and Fujian Provinces in southern China.
Hylopetes phayrei electilis — Hainan Island, China.
Hylopetes bartelsi
Hylopetes nigripes
Hylopetes platyurus
Hylopetes sagitta
Thomas’s Flying Squirrel
Aeromys thomasi
Tibetan Woolly Flying Squirrel
Eupetaurus sp.
Taiwan Giant Flying Squirrel
Petaurista lena
Vordermann’s Flying Squirrel
Petinomys vordermanni