Nocturnal flying squirrel spotted in Arunachal Pradesh after 42 years

ITANAGAR: Nocturnal flying squirrel has been spotted in the Northeast state of Arunachal Pradesh after a gap of 42 years.

This nocturnal species, known only from a single specimen collected in 1981, has been a source of fascination and frustration for conservationists and environmentalists.

Ten of these expeditions were by teams from Aaranyak, an Assam-based biodiversity conservation group, for a total of 79 days in 2021.

A team from the group finally sighted the Namdapha flying squirrel in April 2022.

The team led by Firoz Ahmed included Sourav Gupta, a field researcher, and Sourav Mardi, a volunteer who visited various potential sites close to a river at night.

Tajum Yomcha, a research officer with the Arunachal Pradesh Forest Department, aided in the search for the elusive species.

While photographic evidence suggests the sighting could be a Namdapha flying squirrel, definitive confirmation requires DNA analysis.

Ahmed and his team are currently designing a study to collect DNA samples from the field and compare them with the 1981 specimen stored at the Zoological Survey of India in Kolkata.

About nocturnal flying squirrel

The northern flying squirrel (Glaucomys sabrinus) is one of three species of the genus Glaucomys.

They are found in coniferous and mixed coniferous forests.

They are light brown with pale underparts and grow to a length of 25 to 37 cm (10 to 15 in).

They are proficient gliders but uncoordinated walkers on the ground.

They feed on a variety of plant material as well as tree sap, fungi, insects, carrion, bird eggs and nestlings.

They mostly breed once a year in a cavity lined with lichen or other soft material.

Except when they have young, they change nests frequently, and in winter a number of individuals may huddle together in a shared nest.

Unlike most members of their family, flying squirrels are strictly nocturnal.