40.

Southern Palawan Tree Squirrel

Sundasciurus steerii

French: Ecureuil de Steere / German: Siidliches Palawan-Hérnchen / Spanish: Ardilla meridional de Palawan

Taxonomy. Sciurus steerii Gunther, 1877,

“Balabac”

(Philippines).

This species is monotypic.

Distribution. SW Philippines, in S Palawan, Bancalan, Matangule, and Balabac Is. Descriptive notes. Head-body mean 200 mm (males) and 199 mm (females), tail mean 161 mm (males) and 156 mm (females); weight mean 257-1 g (males) and 222.5 g (females). Dorsum of the Southern Palawan Tree Squirrel varies from chestnut to light brown, and venter varies from chestnut to dull brown. The Southern Palawan Tree Squirrel is similar to the Northern Palawan Tree Squirrel (S. juvencus) but is more rufous.

Habitat. Lowland forests, coconut groves, and banana plantations.

Food and Feeding. There is no information available for this species.

Breeding. There is no information available for this species.

Activity patterns. There is no specific information available for this species, but the Southern Palawan Tree Squirrel is diurnal.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. There is no information available for this species.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Southern Palawan Tree Squirrelis locally abundant, and considered a garden and crop pest. Forest conversion to rice paddiesis a potential threat, and although hunting is widespread, it is unlikely to be a major impact.

Bibliography. Esselstyn et al. (2004), Heaney et al. (1998), Ong, Tabaranza, Rosell-Ambal, Balete & Heaney (2008d), Thorington et al. (2012).