The red-legged sun squirrel (''Heliosciurus rufobrachium'') is a species of

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the Order (biology), order Rodentia ( ), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and Mandible, lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal specie ...

in the family

Sciuridae Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae (), a family that includes small or medium-sized rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrel ...

, also commonly known as the isabelline red-legged sun squirrel. It is native to tropical western and central Africa where its range extends from Senegal in the west, through Nigeria and the Republic of Congo to Uganda and Tanzania in the east. Its natural

habitat In ecology, habitat refers to the array of resources, biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species' habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ...

s are subtropical or tropical moist lowland

forest A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense ecological community, community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, ...

s and moist

savanna A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) biome and ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach th ...

. This species is thought to be common and has a very wide distribution, so the

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the stat ...

has rated its conservation status as being of "

least concern A least-concern species is a species that has been evaluated and categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as not being a focus of wildlife conservation because the specific species is still plentiful in the wil ...

Description

The red-legged sun squirrel is a medium-sized squirrel, with an average head-body length of and an average weight of ; males are slightly larger than females. They have large eyes, small rounded ears, and a tail about the same length as the head and body combined. The fur is dark brown to grey across the body, but reddish on the limbs and muzzle and black on the tail. Females have two teats on the chest, and another four much further back on the body on the rear part of the abdomen. The brain is slightly smaller than expected, compared with other African squirrels of similar size.

Distribution and habitat

The red-legged sun squirrel is found across sub-Saharan Africa from

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

and

Gambia The Gambia, officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. Geographically, The Gambia is the List of African countries by area, smallest country in continental Africa; it is surrounded by Senegal on all sides except for ...

in the west to

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

in the east but not south of the

Congo River The Congo River, formerly also known as the Zaire River, is the second-longest river in Africa, shorter only than the Nile, as well as the third-largest river in the world list of rivers by discharge, by discharge volume, following the Amazon Ri ...

. It is found in habitats with large trees in which it can climb, in moist primary and secondary forests, plantations, isolated trees in savannahs and gardens. It has been reported from mangrove swamps (''

Avicennia ''Avicennia'' is a genus of flowering plants currently placed in the bear's breeches family, Acanthaceae. It contains mangrove trees, which occur in the intertidal zones of estuarine areas and are characterized by its "pencil roots", which ar ...

'' spp.) in Sierra Leone. 21 subspecies are currently recognised: * ''H. r. rufobrachium'' -

Bioko Bioko (; ; ; historically known as Fernando Pó, ) is an island of Equatorial Guinea. It is located south of the coast of Cameroon, and northwest of the northernmost part of mainland Equatorial Guinea. Malabo, on the north coast of the is ...

* ''H. r. arrhenii'' -

Rwanda Rwanda, officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of East Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator, Rwanda is bordered by ...

* ''H. r. aubryi'' -

Gabon Gabon ( ; ), officially the Gabonese Republic (), is a country on the Atlantic coast of Central Africa, on the equator, bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, the Republic of the Congo to the east and south, and ...

* ''H. r. benga'' -

Equatorial Guinea Equatorial Guinea, officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. It has an area of . Formerly the colony of Spanish Guinea, its post-independence name refers to its location both near the Equ ...

* ''H. r. caurinus'' -

* ''H. r. coenosus'' - western

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

* ''H. r. emissus'' - northern

Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...

* ''H. r. hardyi'' -

Côte d'Ivoire Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest city and ...

* ''H. r. isabellinus'' -

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

* ''H. r. keniae'' - western

* ''H. r. leakyi'' - eastern Kenya * ''H. r. leonensis'' -

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

* ''H. r. lualabae'' - central DRC * ''H. r. maculatus'' -

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

* ''H. r. medjianus'' - northeastern DRC * ''H. r. nyansae'' -

Uganda Uganda, officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. It is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the ...

* ''H. r. obfuscatus'' - southern Nigeria * ''H. r. occidentalis'' -

* ''H. r. pasha'' - northern DRC * ''H. r. rubricatus'' - central-eastern DRC * ''H. r. semlikii'' - eastern DRC

Ecology

The red-legged sun squirrel is diurnal and forages in the upper and middle storeys of large trees. The diet consists primarily of fruits and seeds, but some green vegetation and arthropods are also eaten; much time is spent foraging along branches and probing into crevices for insects and their larvae. In captivity, these squirrels caught and ate birds introduced into their cages, and also ate birds eggs. These squirrels are usually observed alone or in pairs, but seem to be gregarious as they have been seen grooming each other and resting side by side. Nesting takes place in holes in trunks and branches which are lined by twigs with their green leaves still attached. Breeding takes place twice a year with usually two young being born in each litter.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q309306 Heliosciurus Rodents of Africa Mammals described in 1842 Taxa named by George Robert Waterhouse Taxonomy articles created by Polbot