11 March 2020

Squirrel ID´s from Northeast India

Have some problem to Identify Squirrels from the remote Arunachal Pradesh – Eaglenest in northeast India.

All of them is found at around 2000 mas in almost unexplored area.

The ones I have to deal with is Pallas squirrel, Hoary-bellied squirrel and Himalayan Orange bellied squirrel and I have uploaded them on Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/78467255@N08/

Photo 1 and 2 is of same Squirrel. Long nose, almost a bit like Malayan tree shrew,,,

Photo 3 is of a flying squirrel. Around 75% the size of Bhutan giant flying squirrel but completely different. Is it a weird morph of Red giant squirrel och something else?

Photo 4 is Bhutan giant flying squirrel I guess,

Photo 5. Squirrel with quite long tail suggest Hoary Bellied or Pallas?

Photo 6 and 7 is of same squirrel. Shorter tail. Orange bellied squirrel??

Photo 8. Very vocal. Screamed at me for 20 minutes. Rufuous color around head and belly. Little darker than the others. Pallas?

Hope for some help before I start my trip report from 3 weeks in India.

Cheers /Andreas

 

 

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7 Comments

  • 13 March 2020
    Lee

    Antee,
    Some of your photos are underexposed. Does your camera make raw image files and, if so, did you save them? They can be used to correct exposure. Lee (leeharding@shaw.ca)

    • 13 March 2020
      Antee

      I have not processed the photos thru Lightroom yet.

      I am more interesting in ID´s of those squirrels at the moment.

      Could the first two be an Northern tree shrew (Tupaia belangeri)? The only shrew in the area.
      In other words, a shrew and not a squirrel?

  • 14 March 2020
    Israel

    The first animal is a tree shrew.

    The first flying squirrel looks like a Spotted Giant, but I don’t know if they are found there or not.

    Second flying squirrel looks like a Bhutan.

    The next squirrel is a Pallas’ Squirrel.

    Next one is Himalayan Orange-bellied Squirrel.

    Last one can’t tell – likely a Pallas’ though.

  • 14 March 2020
    Antee

    Thanx alot.

    The Spotted giant flying squirrel fits very well. The size and look of it.

    It hasn´t been recorded here as far as I know and it´s distribution map have a “hole” in northeastern India. But do exist in Bhutan and Nepal in the west and Burma/China in east.

    For me, very likely that it also exists in northeastern India.

    This is a very unexplored area so distribution maps is most likely not 100% correct.

    Grey Headed flying squirrel is recorded from Eaglenest but this is not one.

  • 14 March 2020
    Israel

    The last squirrel could perhaps be a Red-cheeked Ground Squirrel – I don’t know if they are there but it would account for the reddish on the head. But really the photo isn’t much good for a proper identification, I don’t think.

  • 14 March 2020
    Avijit Sarkhel

    Do share the exact areas of Eaglesnest where you saw the squirrels as that will help in the id – ENS has a no of squirrels and since from Tenga to Sessni the altitude varies very widely – so it helps to know where they were sighted. The first and the second image is Tupaia belangeri; Where did you shoot the first gliding squirrel – we had shot the first image of the Grey-faced Gliding Squirrel from ENS – you can see the image in Marc and Peggy’s blog. The second image of the flying squirrel is Bhutan Giant – they have a deeper tawny coat in Eaglesnest than shown in images or illustrations and it varies to some extent I think. Israel has already given the ids. The last one is a Pallas’. In Arunachal – further to the eastern parts the Pallas’ is darker than otherwise.

  • 15 March 2020
    Antee

    Thanx alot Avjit!

    As I mentioned, all of the photos are from around 2000 mas.
    Between Lama camp and Bombu camp.

    Quite close to the camps, all of them.

    This mystery Flying Squirrel is close to Bombu camp, maybe 500m along the road above it, at 2000 mas.

    My guide had a fantastic photo of a Grey headed flying Squirrel from here last year but it had a very distinct grey head and was easy to identify.
    This one has not this grey head.

    Spotted giant flying squirrel feels more relevant here. The problem is that it is not known from this area. Until now maybe 🙂

    Seems like I missed the Hoary-Bellied then…, maybe they are only in lowlands?

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