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The southern flying squirrel looks like a
small rodent when it moves along the branches of a tree, but when it glides
through the air it appears to have the grace of a bird. A flying squirrel
does not fly in the true sense of the word. It does not have wings
to power itself through the air like a bird. Instead, it glides for a long
distances, traveling from tree to tree by extending a fur covered membrane
that is attached to its hind and forelegs.
Habits: Flying squirrels live in tall trees in the forests of North America. By gilding through the air among the trees, they avoid ground predators but still are vulnerable to attack by hawks. Flying squirrels feed at night, but they must remain alert to the presence of owls, which also prey upon them. At dawn flying squirrels return to hollow trees, abandoned woodpeckers holes, or outbuildings and spend most of the day sleeping. The number of squirrels in an area depends on the supply of suitable places to rest and sleep during the day. In the summer, individuals squirrels have their own resting places, but in the winter they sleep in groups of 20 or more for warmth. During very cold weather the flying squirrels become lethargic and may emerge only to eat the food they gather in the fall.
Breeding: Approximantely 40 days after mating, the female squirrel gives birth to two to six young in a nest she makes in a hole in a tree. By the time the young are weaned at two months, they have already made short exploratory flights with their mother. as they mature, they follow her on nightly foraging trips. Fewer than a third of all young squirrels survive their first year.
Food & Feeding: The Flying squirrels feed on most types of vegetation. In addition to nuts and seeds, they eat buds, shoots, soft fruit, lichens, and fungi. they also eat insects, spiders, and bird eggs and nestling. Flying squirrels have large eyes that allow them to see clearly in the dark. Their keen eyesight, their acute hearing, and their long, sensitive whiskers, enable them to locate food. Most of their food is eaten immediately, but nuts and seeds are often hoarded to be eaten later during the cold winter months. The squirrels instinct to store food becomes stronger as fall approaches.
Key Facts: Sizes, Weight, breeding, lifestyle,
related Species
Length: Body, 6 in, tail, 4 in
Weight: Up to 6 oz
Breeding:
Sexual Maturity: 1 to 2 years
Mating: January to March
Gestation: 40 days
Litter Size: 2 to 6
Lifestyle:
Habit: Nocturnal (sleeps during the day).
Solitary in summer but lives in groups of up to 24 during the winter..
Call: A musical chirping sound or a squeal
when threatened.
Diet: Nuts, seeds, fruit, insects, spiders,
and birds eggs.
Life span: Up to 10 years
Related Species: The northern flying squirrel,
Glaucomy's sabrinus, also from North America, is often regarded as the
same species.
Distribution: Throughout eastern North
America from Canada to Mexico in areas where there are forest of various
species of tall trees.
Conservation: The southern flying squirrel
is in no danger of extinction while the North American forest are still
standing. It is an adaptable animal that can live near human populations
How the Southern Flying Squirrel Glides:
The flying squirrel controls it s flight with
great precision. Before takeoff, it sizes up its target and judges the
range and direction. It then leaps with limbs and membrane outstretched,
gliding down through the branches. Just before landing, it lifts it tail
and swoops upward, landing on the tree trunk with all four feet.
The flying squirrel's membrane covers the body
and is attached to the wrists and ankles and to the extensions from the
elbows.
A thin cartilage stretches from forelimbs to
neck on each side of the squirrels body, forming an aerodynamic leading
edge along the membrane. The squirrel uses it forelimbs to alter
the shape and tension of the membrane. Thereby increasing lift on each
side so it can steer itself.
Did you know?
Flying squirrels usually glide from tree to tree
but often make sharp, arobatic turns in the air before landing.
The membranes bulk makes flying squirrels relatively
awkward when on the ground.
Australasian marsupials called gliders were use
the same technique for moving through the forest canopy, but they are not
related to the flying squirrels.
The giant Southeast Asian species of flying squirrels
can glide 350 feet.