Layard's palm squirrel

The Layard - palm squirrel ( Funambulus layardi ) is a Hörnchenart from the kind of Striped Palmenhörchen ( Funambulus ). The species name honors the British naturalist Edgar Leopold Layard, the discoverer of the Art

Features

The males of the Layard - Palmenhörchens reach a head -body length of 144 mm and a tail length of 158 mm, the females have a head -body length of 154 mm and a weight of 168 g The coat pattern, the Layard - Palm Squirrel as farbenprächtigstes Member of the entire genus. On the back run three longitudinal stripes, the middle back stripe and sometimes the lateral strips have a bright orange - yellow color. The peritoneum shows a chestnut -colored, yellowish - orange or rust-brown coloration. About the tail underside runs a red center line.

Distribution, habitat and way of life

The Layard - Palmenhörchen occurs in the south-west and in the central region of Sri Lanka. An erroneous sighting of a young animal in India apparently based on a confusion with the Dark Palm squirrel ( Funambulus sublineatus ). As habitat evergreen rain forests in the plains and in the mountain regions are preferred. The lifestyle of the Layard - Palm squirrel is very little research. It is diurnal and arboreal.

Status

The Layard - Palmenhörchen is considered rare and is "endangered" by the IUCN ( vulnerable ) classified. The main threat is habitat destruction and degradation caused by large plantations, selective logging and forest fires from. The extent of habitat destruction is estimated at 20 to 50 percent over a period of 10 years.