Bangs's mountain squirrel

Bangs's mountain squirrel (Syntheosciurus brochus) is a poorly known species of tree squirrel, that only lives in Costa Rica and Panama. It can be found in mountain rain forests at an altitude between 1,900 and 2,600 metres (6,200 and 8,500 ft), and lives mainly in the tree tops, but sometimes on the forest floor as well. One of its habitats is at the summit of the Poás Volcano in Costa Rica, in a Clusia forest that is almost inaccessible to humans.

Bangs's mountain squirrel
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Sciuridae
Genus: Syntheosciurus
Bangs, 1902
Species:
S. brochus
Binomial name
Syntheosciurus brochus
Bangs, 1902

Description

The squirrel's head and body measure 15 centimetres (5.9 in), with a 13 centimetres (5.1 in) tail. It has an olive brown back and an orange-red belly. Because of the shape of its skull and teeth, the species has been separated from the genus of typical tree squirrels, Sciurus, into its own (monotypical) genus Syntheosciurus.

Recent discovery

Until the 1980s, only four animals of this species were known. Since then, the species has been studied more in depth, especially by the zoologists N.M.Wells and J.Giacalone, who write that these mountain squirrels are sociable creatures. These squirrels live in pairs, together with their young, in a tree nest at a height of 6 to 12 metres (20–39 ft).

References
  • Koprowski, J.; Roth, L.; Reid, F.; Woodman, N.; Timm, R.; Pino, J. & Samudio. R. (2008). "Syntheosciurus brochus". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN. 2008: e.T21260A9262389. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T21260A9262389.en. Retrieved 24 December 2017.
  • Ronald M. Nowak: Walker's Mammals of the World. Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999 ISBN 0-8018-5789-9
  • Robert K. Enders: Observations on Syntheosciurus: taxonomy and behavior. Journal of Mammalogy 1980, Bd. 61, S. 725-727
  • J. Giacalone, N.M. Wells, G. Willis: Observations on Syntheosciurus brochus (Sciuridae) in Volcán Poás National Park. Journal of Mammalogy 1987, Bd. 68, S. 145-147
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