Japanese giant flying squirrel

Glide like a glider.

Scientific name	Petaurista leucogenys
English name	Japanese giant flying squirrel
Japanese name	鼯鼠
Classification	Mammalia
Classification details	Rodentia Sciuridae
Full length	25cm-50cm
Distribution	Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu

Characteristics

A mammal of the squirrel family that glides from tree to tree like a glider using a patagium between its front and hind legs. It is endemic to Japan along with the Japanese flying squirrel, a mammal that also glides. It weighs around 1kg, but can glide more than 120m by expanding its normally folded membrane.

The whole body is brown and the tail is long. The belly and facial contours are white. Ears are small and curved. The sharp eyes are perfectly black.

Differences between flying squirrels and flying squirrels

Flying squirrels and flying squirrels are both gliding mammals and look very similar. I wonder if I could distinguish between the two until I saw the giant flying squirrel in real life.

The big difference is the size of the body. Giant flying squirrels are large and can grow up to about 50 cm, while flying squirrels are about 20 cm. A small difference is that the giant flying squirrel's patagium is only between its front and hind legs, and the sides of its face are white.

Ecology

Inhabits forests from mountains to human settlements. It is nocturnal and eats fruits and buds on trees. They prefer tall trees in temples and shrines with tree cavities as their homes. They live in trees and do not feed on the ground. You can glide from tree to tree and travel over 120m in the air.

Habitat

Found in a cedar tree in Hachioji, Tokyo.

I wasn't looking for flying squirrels, I was just trying to get a picture of a gray wagtail walking on the ground. Suddenly there was a loud bang, so I looked up and saw a long, brown creature stuck to the cedar tree in front of me, about 3 meters above the ground. The squirrel-shaped creature climbed a few more meters, grabbed onto a branch, and looked at me.

Only when it stopped moving did I realize that the creature was something other than a squirrel. Since the distinction between flying squirrels and flying squirrels was vague in my mind, I immediately thought, "It's flying squirrels!"

After a while, it climbed to the top of the cedar tree and hid itself in a position that was hard to see from below.