About the Species: Malayan giant squirrel or Black Giant Squirrel is one of the world’s largest squirrel species.
Conservation Status:
Conservation Status: - IUCN Status: Near Threatened
- CITES: Appendix II.
- Wildlife Protection Act, 1972: Schedule I
Habitat: It is distributed across Bangladesh, Northeast India, Nepal, Bhutan, China, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Indonesia.
Characteristics:
- It has a dark upper body, pale underparts, and a long, bushy tail.
- Food Habits: The species is omnivorous and feeds on fruits, flowers, nuts, bark, bird eggs, and insects.
Significance:
The giant squirrel is considered a forest health indicator species. An indicator species provides information on the overall condition of the ecosystem and of other species in that ecosystem.
Threats:
Deforestation, fragmentation of forests, crop cultivation and over-harvesting of food, illegal trade in wildlife, hunting for consumption. and Slash-and-burn jhum cultivation.
