Mentawai croissants
| Mentawai croissants | ||||||||||||
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| Callosciurus melanogaster | ||||||||||||
| ( Thomas , 1895) |
The Mentawai squirrel ( Callosciurus melanogaster ) is a species of squirrel from the genus of the real beautiful squirrel ( Callosciurus ). It occurs on the Mentawai Islands belonging to Indonesia .
features
The Mentawai Croissant reached a head-body length 20 to 22 centimeters and a weight of about 290 to 300 grams. The tail reaches a length of about 18 centimeters and is thus slightly shorter than the rest of the body. The coloring of the animals is black-gray to black on both the back and the belly side. On the side there are two indistinct stripes, the upper one gray and the lower one black and merging into the back color.
distribution
The Mentawai Squirrel comes on to Indonesia belonging Mentawai Islands Siberut , Sipora , North and South Pagai ago.
Way of life
The Mentawai Croissant, like all other species of the genus primarily arboreal ( arboricol ). It occurs in various forest habitats on the islands, from primary rainforest areas to swamp forests to secondary forests . The species is diurnal, the main activity takes place in the morning and afternoon. In addition, it is active after sunset and before sunrise and is expressed by clear calls. The animals are rare on the ground, they use all tree heights and rest above all above 25 meters. They feed mainly on plants, especially fruits and young leaves and bark. In addition, there are insects, which individually can make up up to 65% of the diet.
Together with the Mentawai flying squirrel ( iomys Sipora ), the Siberut flying squirrel ( Petinomys lugens ), the Sipora flying squirrel ( Hylopetes Sipora ) Leopoldamys siporanus , Maxomys pagensis , Chiropodomys karlkoopmani , Rattus lugens , the Mentawai tree squirrels ( Fraternal Squirrel ) and the Mentawai three -striped squirrel ( Lariscus obscurus ), the Mentawai squirrel represents the endemic rodent fauna of the Mentawai Islands.
Systematics
The Mentawai squirrel is classified as an independent species within the genus of the real beautiful squirrel ( Callosciurus ), which consists of 15 species. The first scientific description comes from Oldfield Thomas from 1895, who described the species from the island of Sipora .
Within the species, three subspecies are distinguished with the nominate form :
- Callosciurus melanogaster melanogaster : nominate form, occurs on Sipora.
- Callosciurus melanogaster atratus : Occurrence on north and south pagai, the color corresponds to the nominate form with some reddish-brown washes and the lower lateral stripe is also reddish-brown.
- Callosciurus melanogaster mentawi : Occurrence on Siberut, the ventral side is reddish-brown
Status, threat and protection
The Mentawai croissant is classified as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). This status is justified because of the small distribution area of less than 20,000 km 2 and a real distribution on less than 2000 km 2 on the Mentawai Islands. The area is also fragmented and used for logging.
supporting documents
- ↑ a b c d e f Richard W. Thorington Jr., John L. Koprowski, Michael A. Steele: Squirrels of the World. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2012; Pp. 143-144. ISBN 978-1-4214-0469-1
- ↑ a b c Callosciurus melanogaster in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2014.2. Posted by: D. Lunde, JW Duckworth, B. Lee, RJ Tizard, 2008. Retrieved October 25, 2014.
- ↑ Don E. Wilson & DeeAnn M. Reeder (eds.): Leopoldamys siporanus in Mammal Species of the World. A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed).
- ↑ a b c Callosciurus melanogaster In: Don E. Wilson , DeeAnn M. Reeder (Ed.): Mammal Species of the World. A taxonomic and geographic Reference. 2 volumes. 3. Edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2005, ISBN 0-8018-8221-4 .
literature
- Richard W. Thorington Jr., John L. Koprowski, Michael A. Steele: Squirrels of the World. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2012; Pp. 143-144. ISBN 978-1-4214-0469-1
Web links
- Callosciurus melanogaster inthe IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2014.2. Posted by: D. Lunde, JW Duckworth, B. Lee, RJ Tizard, 2008. Retrieved October 25, 2014.