Petaurista lena Thomas, 1907

Taxonomic Classification

The red and white giant flying squirrel (Petaurista alborufus) is a rodent species belonging to the Sciuridae family.

Appearance Overview

This is a very large flying squirrel with dark rufous-red, buff, and white coloring.

Altitudinal Range by Location

It inhabits forests at altitudes ranging from 800 to 3,500 m (2,600 to 11,500 ft) in mainland China, and from 1,200 to 3,750 m (3,940 to 12,300 ft) in Taiwan.

Taiwanese Population Taxonomy

The Taiwanese population is distinct, and it is widely considered better classified as a separate species called the Taiwan giant flying squirrel, with the scientific name Petaurista lena.

Potential Distribution Outside China

The red and white giant flying squirrel may also occur in northeastern South Asia and the far northern part of Mainland Southeast Asia.

Conservation Status

This species has a wide distribution and is relatively common, so the International Union for Conservation of Nature has listed it as a species of least concern.

Activity Pattern

Red and white giant flying squirrels sleep in tree hollows during the day, and emerge at night to forage in trees.

Diet Composition

Their diet is primarily made up of nuts and fruits, but it also includes leafy vegetation, insects, and insect larvae.

Gliding Capability

Like other flying squirrels, this species glides between trees rather than achieving true flight like bats, and has been recorded gliding up to an exceptional 400 m (1,300 ft).

Gliding Adaptation

Gliding is made possible by the patagium, a stretch of skin that extends between the squirrel's limbs.

Subspecies Overview

Multiple subspecies of the red and white giant flying squirrel are recognized.

Chinese Subspecies Distribution

Under the traditional classification, four subspecies occur in China: P. a. alborufus in Gansu, Shaanxi, and western Sichuan; P. a. castaneus in Chongqing, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, eastern Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Yunnan; P. a. leucocephalus in Xizang; and P. a. ochraspis in Guangxi and Yunnan.

Taiwanese Subspecies Name

The Taiwanese subspecies is P. a. lena.

Misidentification Records

However, existing records of the species from Gansu and Qinghai are likely misidentifications of Chinese giant flying squirrels.

Non-China Status Uncertainty

The species' status outside of China is not well understood.

Myanmar Subspecies Records

One source has recorded P. a. leucocephalus in northern Myanmar (Burma), while another source has recorded P. a. ochraspis there.

Myanmar Presence Confirmation

Despite the species being confirmed in areas of China directly adjacent to northern Myanmar, its presence in Myanmar itself remains unconfirmed.

South Asia Distribution Claims

P. a. leucocephalus has also been reported from Bhutan and Assam, India, but other authorities do not recognize the species as occurring in either location.

Taiwanese Subspecies Genetic Findings

Genetic studies confirm that the isolated Taiwanese P. a. lena has a unique appearance and is more closely related to several other giant flying squirrel species than it is to mainland China's red and white giant flying squirrel.

Taiwanese Species Status Recommendation

For this reason, authorities recommend that it be recognized as a separate species, P. lena (the Taiwan giant flying squirrel).

Candidula Subspecies Classification

Another subspecies, candidula from Myanmar and northern Thailand, is typically classified as part of the red giant flying squirrel, but it may be more appropriately included in the red and white giant flying squirrel instead.