The Père David's rock squirrel (''Sciurotamias davidianus''), also known as the Chinese rock squirrel, is a species of
rodent
Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are n ...
in the family
Sciuridae
Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae, a family that includes small or medium-size rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrels. Squ ...
. It is
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
China, where it is found widely in rocky habitats in the eastern and central parts of the country.
[ This largely ]terrestrial
Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth.
Terrestrial may also refer to:
* Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on or near the ground, as opposed to ...
squirrel is overall dull olive-grey with paler underparts, a distinct pale eye-ring and a dark patch on the cheeks. It has sometimes been confused with the rather different –but in colour very variable– Pallas's squirrel; an introduced population in Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
was first mistakenly identified as Père David's rock squirrel.[Stuyck, Baert, Breyne & Adriaens (2010). ]
Invasion history and control of a Pallas squirrel Callosciurus erythraeus population in Dadizele, Belgium.
' Instituut voor Natuur- en Bosonderzoek.
References
External links
Rodents of China
Sciurotamias
Mammals described in 1867
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot
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