The Laotian giant flying squirrel (''Biswamoyopterus laoensis'') is an

arboreal Arboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some animals may scale trees only occasionally, but others are exclusively arboreal. The habitats pose nu ...

, flying squirrel

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to Laos. It was the second described member in the genus '' Biswamoyopterus'', after being first collected in September 2012 by scientists researching the animal corpses in the illegal Thongnami bushmeat market, Ban Thongnami, Pakkading District, Bolikhamxai Province.

Description

''Biswamoyopterus laoensis'' has reddish, grizzled

fur Fur is a thick growth of hair that covers the skin of mammals. It consists of a combination of oily guard hair on top and thick underfur beneath. The guard hair keeps moisture from reaching the skin; the underfur acts as an insulating blanket t ...

with white above. Its crown is pale grey, its patagium is orangish and its underparts are white. ''Biswamoyopterus laoensis'' has one of the greatest lengths in the squirrel family, with a body length of and a tail length of , for a total length of , along with a mass of . This is slightly larger than the one other ''Biswamoyopterus'' species, '' B. biswasi'', known from a single sample found in India in 1981.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q14828451 Biswamoyopterus Rodents of Laos Endemic fauna of Laos Mammals described in 2013 Species known from a single specimen