Heliosciurus rufobrachium 229H. r. leonensis—Sierra Leone. This subspecies is similar to H.
r. caurinus, but bolder in color. It has a darker dorsal coat,
redder limbs, and grizzled ochre and black feet.
H. r. lualabae—Democratic Republic of the Congo. This form
is small, dark, and fi nely speckled, with white or buff y
tail rings.
H. r. maculatus—eastern Sierra Leone to Ghana. This sub-
species is dark, with a deep red coloration on the fore-
arms and the inner surfaces of the thighs.
H. r. medjianus—Democratic Republic of the Congo. The
ventral pelage is uniformly dark, with a conspicuous
white chest area. The throat and the medial surfaces of
the limbs are pale or dull red.
H. r. nyansae—Nyando River Valley (western Kenya),
Rwanda, Burundi, and western Tanzania. The chin, the
sides of the head, and the medial and lateral sides of the
feet are a rusty red color. The tail is black with gray rings.
H. r. obfuscatus—southeastern Nigeria and Mount Cameroon
(Cameroon). This subspecies is very dark, with deep
brown and ochraceous feet and a black and ochraceous
tail.
H. r. occidentalis—Cutia (Guinea-Bissau). The head, back, and
limbs are uniform in color. The ears, throat, neck, and
lower part of the face are russet red, as are the base of the
tail and the inner sides of the thighs. The tail is circled by
approximately 25 black rings set against a russet red
base.
H. r. pasha—Democratic Republic of the Congo. The back
and the base of the tail are more rufous, and the feet and
belly are light rufous. The inner surfaces of the thighs
lack a rufous suff usion. The belly is thinly covered with
whitish gray hairs and is clearly demarcated from the
fl anks.
H. r. rubricatus—Democratic Republic of the Congo. This
subspecies is very red, with a pale rufous coloration on
the ventral pelage, throat, sides of the head, and medial
surfaces of the limbs; it has a darker chestnut rufous col-
oration on the distal and lateral surfaces of the limbs and
the underside of the tail.
H. r. semlikii—Semliki River (Democratic Republic of the
Congo). This subspecies resembles H. r. nyansae, but H. r.
semlikii is distinguished by a grayer overall appearance
and fi ner speckling on the dorsal pelage. The midline on
the back is faintly yellow.
conservation: IUCN status—least concern. Population
trend—no information.
habitat: The red-legged sun squirrel is found in a range of
natural habitats, including lowland evergreen tropical for-
ests, mangrove swamps, and drier savanna and gallery for-
est areas. This species tolerates human disturbances well
and can be found in secondary forests, gardens, and agricul-
tural lands, especially cocoa and oil palm plantations.natural history: Red-legged sun squirrels are diurnal
and arboreal, spending most of their time foraging in the
middle and upper parts of the canopy. They leave their nests
after dawn and return well before sunset. Nests are built by
placing fresh leaves and twigs inside narrow hollows in
trees or large branches, 1–20 m above the ground. Although
95 percent of their diet is composed of fruits, seeds, and
green vegetation, individuals spend most of their foraging
time hunting for arthropods. Red-legged sun squirrels, re-
sembling mongooses with their sleek appearance and slink-
ing gait, stalk meticulously through crevices among tree
branches and lianas for ants, termites, and the larvae of
moths and butterfl ies; t hey w i l l even brea k apa r t dead wood
to locate their prey. They capture insects with the forepaws
and/or mouth and kill them by biting the head end, which
they consume fi rst. Captive squirrels adeptly caught and
consumed fl ying birds inside their cages, and they also ate
the birds’ eggs. H. rufobrachium is not known to hoard food,
except for prized food items such as birds. Red-legged sun
squirrels may follow mixed fl ocks of insectivorous birds to
increase their foraging effi ciency as well as to receive in-
creased protection against predators.
Individuals move as singles, pairs, or (very rarely) in
threes. When partnered with company, both wild and cap-
tive red-legged sun squirrels are sociable; they nest, groom,
and play with conspecifi cs. Although wild squirrels forage
freely with one another, captive squirrels maintain a strict
dominance hierarchy for food. H. rufobrachium females give
birth twice a year to a litter of one or two young. These
squirrels are less vocal than other species of Heliosciurus
and are not often heard calling. Their low-intensity alarm
call sounds like a single or double bark and is repeated one
to three times for several minutes. Their high-intensity
alarm call is composed of a low-amplitude descending fre-
quency whine followed by a short quick trill of low-fre-
quency notes; all these vocalizations are repeated several
times at long intervals, distinctively sounding like the coo-
ing of a dove. Each alarm call is accompanied by a stiff cir-
cular sweep of the tail while the feet are stamped. When
sitting with a hanging tail, the animal moves it stiffl y in ran-
dom directions.general references: Emmons 1975, 1980; Morse 1970;
Rahm 1970a; Rosevear 1969.