Layard's Palm Squirrel

About this species

Size

144-154mm head and body, tail 158-168mm

Habitat

Montane evergreen forest and lowland rainforest

Range

Southwestern and central Sri Lanka: Knuckles Range, central highlands and near Matara

Litter size

2-3

Layard's palm squirrel, or flame-striped jungle squirrel, is endemic to Sri Lanka and has no subspecies. It is one of the more colourful squirrels of its genus, with three stripes along the back, orange-yellow above and a vivid yellow-orange underside. Males average 144 mm in head and body length with a 158 mm tail, and females 154 mm with a 168 mm tail (taxonomic treatment of Funambulus layardi, Zenodo).

It lives in montane evergreen forest and lowland rainforest, in fragmented populations in the Knuckles Range, the central highlands and near Matara. It is diurnal and arboreal, litters are two or three, and little has been published on its feeding ecology (same treatment). Nationally Vulnerable (Sri Lanka National Red List 2012).

Description: Wildlife of Sri Lanka guide, Wildlife of Everywhere (wildlifeofeverywhere.com)