Hylopetes

Hylopetes nigripes

The horseshoe flying squirrel ( Hylopetes ) are a species-rich genus of flying squirrels spread in South Asia. They are named after the distinctive shape of its tail, which again widens to the rear and tapers. There are considerable differences in size and coat color between species. The body length ranges from 11 up to 33 cm, added 8-29 cm tail.

Although there are occasional disagreements about the composition of the genus, the following eight kinds are usually reckoned here:

  • Red- flying squirrel, Hylopetes spadiceus ( Blyth 1847), Southeast Asian mainland, Sumatra, Borneo
  • Grey-headed Flying Squirrel, Hylopetes lepidus ( Horsfield 1823), Malay Peninsula, Java, Sumatra, Borneo
  • Sipura flying squirrel, Chasen Hylopetes Sipora 1940 Sipora (one of the Mentawai Islands)
  • Black And White Flying Squirrel, Hylopetes alboniger ( Hodgson 1836), Himalaya, northern Southeast Asia, Yunnan, Hainan
  • Palawan flying squirrel, Hylopetes nigripes ( Thomas 1893), Palawan
  • Phayre flying squirrel, Hylopetes phayrei ( Blyth 1859), Southeast Asia, south-east. China, Hainan
  • Bartel flying squirrel, Hylopetes bartelsi ( Chasen 1939), Java
  • Sumatran Flying Squirrel, Hylopetes winstoni ( Sody 1949), Sumatra

Often the Kashmir flying squirrel of this species is attributed. In some species, there is disagreement as to whether they are not more likely attributable to the genera Petinomys or Iomys. In addition, sometimes another species Hylopetes is described electilis from Hainan Island, which rises in the above list in the Phayre flying squirrel.

The Grey-headed Flying Squirrel is the smallest species of the genus, the Red- the largest flying squirrel. The former is known that it seeks shelter inside of coconuts that have been gnawed and empty eaten by other squirrels or by himself. The Grey-headed flying squirrels can cover distances of up to 135 m in gliding. It has even been observed with this is that it can win ( up to 6 m) ​​in height with very short Gleitstrecken.

Three types of horseshoe flying squirrel be performed at the time of the IUCN Red List. The Sumatran flying squirrel is in the status of " critically endangered ". About this kind almost nothing is known, as it has not recovered since the first description in 1949; which means that the holotype has remained the only known specimen. The same applies to the Sipora flying squirrel; yet it is " threatened " only in status, since the lack of rediscovery may also be related to the remoteness of the island Sipora. Also threatened is the black and white flying squirrel, which has lost through forest destruction within ten years 50 % of its habitat.

Oldfield Thomas Edward Blyth Brian Houghton Hodgson
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