Forrests red squirrel

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Forrests red squirrel
Systematics
Subordination : Squirrel relatives (Sciuromorpha)
Family : Squirrel (Sciuridae)
Subfamily : Ground Squirrel (Xerinae)
Tribe : Real ground squirrels (Marmotini)
Genre : Chinese red squirrel ( Sciurotamias )
Type : Forrests red squirrel
Scientific name
Sciurotamias forresti
( Thomas , 1922)

Forrests red squirrel ( Sciurotamias forresti ) is a species of squirrel from the genus of the Chinese red squirrel ( Sciurotamias ). It occurs in parts of the People's Republic of China .

features

Forrest's red squirrel reaches a head-torso length of about 19.4 to 25.0 centimeters. The tail becomes 13.0 to 18.0 centimeters long and is thus slightly shorter than the rest of the body. The hind foot becomes 47 to 54 millimeters long, the ear length is 25 to 27 millimeters. The back color is dark gray-brown, the individual hairs have brown and sand-colored ringlets. The sides of the head, throat and flanks are ocher in color. On the sides of the body, a thin white line runs from the shoulders to the hips, and below that a darker line with the color of the back, which becomes ocher in the lower area and towards the back. The ventral side is also ocher in color, but paler and with a white spot that extends from the chin to the chest. The ears are sand-colored brown, the soles of the feet are almost bare. Compared to the Forrests red squirrel, the Père David red squirrel ( Sciurotamias davidianus ) is paler and does not have a light side stripe, in some individuals a dark stripe runs down the cheek.

1 · 0 · 1 · 3  =  20
Tooth formula of the Père David Red Squirrel

The skull has a total length of 54 to 60 millimeters, it is wide and flat. The type has too a maxillary per half incisor tooth formed incisor (incisor) to which a tooth gap ( diastema follows). This is followed by a premolar and three molars . Overall, the animals have a set of 20 teeth, while the Père David red squirrel, which is assigned to the same genus, has one more upper premolar and thus 22 teeth. The tympanic cavity is small.

The penis bone is flat and straight, the tip is V-shaped.

distribution

Forrest's red squirrel is endemic to the People's Republic of China , where it is found in the Chinese provinces of Sichuan and Yunnan . It lives in the Hengduan Shan .

Way of life

Forrests red squirrel is a ground squirrel that occurs in a very limited area in the high mountains at an altitude of 3000 meters. It lives there in rock faces and valley floors with bush vegetation. Little is known about the way of life, it probably resembles that of the Père David red squirrel.

Systematics

Forrests red squirrel is classified as a separate species within the genus of the Chinese red squirrel ( Sciurotamias ), which consists of two species. The first scientific description comes from Oldfield Thomas from 1922 as Rupestes forresti , who described the species in an article about mammals from the "Yunnan Highlands" from a collection by George Forrest . He described this species using individuals from the Hengduan Shan between the Mekong and the Yangtze in the Sichuan province of China.

The species is occasionally assigned to its own genus or subgenus Rupestes . Apart from the nominate form, no subspecies are distinguished within the species .

Status, threat and protection

Forrest's red squirrel is classified as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). This is justified by the comparatively large distribution area and the frequent occurrence of the species, but no specific population sizes are known. There are no potential threats to the existence of this species.

supporting documents

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g Robert S. Hoffmann, Andrew T. Smith: Forest's Rock Squirrel. In: Andrew T. Smith , Yan Xie: A Guide to the Mammals of China. Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ 2008, ISBN 978-0-691-09984-2 , pp. 192-193.
  2. ↑ a b Richard W. Thorington Jr., John L. Koprowski, Michael A. Steele: Squirrels of the World. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2012; Pp. 199-200. ISBN 978-1-4214-0469-1
  3. ^ Robert S. Hoffmann, Andrew T. Smith: Père David's Rock Squirrel. In: Andrew T. Smith , Yan Xie: A Guide to the Mammals of China. Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ 2008, ISBN 978-0-691-09984-2 , p. 192.
  4. ↑ a b c Sciurotamias forresti in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2014.3. Listed by: Andrew T. Smith, CH Johnston, 2008. Retrieved May 19, 2015.
  5. ↑ a b c d Sciurotamias forresti 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 .
  6. ↑ Oldfield Thomas : On mammals from the Yunnan highlands collected by Mr. George Forrest and presented to the British Museum by Col. Stephenson R. Clarke, DSO Annals & Magazine of Natural History, 1922; Pp. 391-406. Full text

literature

  • Richard W. Thorington Jr., John L. Koprowski, Michael A. Steele: Squirrels of the World. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2012; Pp. 199-200. ISBN 978-1-4214-0469-1
  • Robert S. Hoffmann, Andrew T. Smith: Père David's Rock Squirrel. In: Andrew T. Smith , Yan Xie: A Guide to the Mammals of China. Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ 2008, ISBN 978-0-691-09984-2 , pp. 192-193.

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