Squirrels of the World

Funambulus pennantii 163

elevations of about 1219–1372 m, where it will approach hu-
man environments, taking the place of F. pennantii. On the
outskirts of the Western Ghats (India), F. palmarum occurs
on the hills (at 1250 m), but it is replaced by F. pennantii on
the Deccan plain (at 549 m). It occurs in deciduous rainfor-
ests throughout almost all of the Western Ghats, but it does
not enter the wet evergreen forests. F. palmarum is more ar-
boreal than F. pennantii, but it does descend to the ground.

natural history: The Indian palm squirrel feeds on
fruits, nuts, buds, young shoots, bark, nectar, and insects. At
Point Calimere Wildlife Sanctuary (Tamil Nadu, India) it
utilizes 50 species of plants. It feeds on the nectar of some
plant species, including silk cotton trees (Ceiba pentandra),
and probably helps with their pollination. Bark searching,
probably for insects, is a frequent habit. This species builds
a nest like that of a passerine bird—somewhat globular and
placed on branches. The Indian palm squirrel’s voice resem-
bles that of F. pennantii, but it is more birdlike and slightly
deeper in pitch. This species is an infrequent prey of the
Indian Eagle Owl (Bubo bengalensis).

general references: Nameer and Molur 2008a.

Funambulus pennantii Wroughton, 1905

Northern Palm Squirrel

description: F. pennantii is the northern species of striped

squirrel, with fi ve pale longitudinal stripes on the darker

dorsal surface. The mid-dorsal stripe reaches onto the tail,

and the lateral stripes extend from the ears to the base of the

tail. There are two lateral stripes on the head: a faint one

extending from the ear to the eye, and a more distinctive

one stretching from below the ear, passing below the eye,

and onto the rostrum. It lacks the red midventral stripe on

the tail seen in the other species.

size: Female—HB 155.0 mm (n = 11); T 134.6 (n = 10); Mass

102.9 g (n = 41).

Male—HB 134.4 mm (n = 9); T 130.0 mm (n = 8); Mass 95.2

(n = 66).

distribution: This species occurs in southeastern Iran,

east through Pakistan to Nepal, Bangladesh, northern and

central India, and perhaps adjacent Afghanistan. It was in-

troduced to the Andaman Islands (India), Perth (Western

Australia), Israel, and perhaps to the area where it occurs in

Assam (India).

geographic variation: Two subspecies are recognized.

Funambulus palmarum. Photo courtesy Sudhir Shivaram.