About 50 species of squirrels that glide between trees on a furred membrane stretching from wrist to ankle, steering with their limbs and tail. Most are nocturnal. They cannot truly fly, but can cover a forest faster than tree squirrels.
Quick answers
What is it?Mammal
Carnivore?Omnivore
Dangerous?No
Domesticated?No
Awake when?Night
Most flying squirrels are nocturnal.
Hibernates?No
Kept as a pet?No
Do people eat it?No
At a glance
Found inNorth America, Asia, Europe
HabitatForest
ColoursGrey, Brown
SizeTiny
Legs4
Covered inFur
Lives incolonies
Lives for5–10 years
In the wild
- Where it lives
- North America and Asia; the Siberian flying squirrel reaches northeast Europe (Russia, Finland and Estonia).
- What it eats
- Fruit, seeds, buds, flowers, insects, snails and spiders.
Did you know
Does not fly but glides up to 90 metres, and it glows pink under UV light.
In 2019 a flying squirrel was found by chance to glow pink under UV light; ordinary squirrels do not.
A cartilage spur on each wrist, found only in flying squirrels, helps hold the gliding membrane out.
Often confused with
- Sugar glider
The sugar glider looks and glides much like a flying squirrel, but it is a marsupial, not a squirrel.
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