71.

Borneo Black-banded Squirrel

Callosciurus orestes

French: Ecureuil de Bornéo / German: Borneo-Schénhérnchen / Spanish: Ardilla de bandas negras de Borneo

Taxonomy. Callosciurus orestes Thomas, 1895,

Mount Dulit, Sarawak, Malaysia.

This species is monotypic.

Distribution. N & WC Borneo, in Sabah and Sarawak (Malaysia) and in NW Kalimantan (Indonesia).

Descriptive notes. Head-body 148-153 mm, tail 139-157 mm; weight c.278 g. Dorsum of the Borneo Black-banded Squirrel is brown and finely speckled. It has a buffy spot behind its small rounded ear and lateral stripes that are buffy white over black. Venter is gray, sometimes a dark gray, and sometimes paler with a reddish tinge.

Habitat. Lower montane and submontane forests, possibly up to upper dipterocarp forests. The Borneo Black-banded Squirrel appears to be restricted to lower montane forests. It is an uncommon squirrel on the island of Borneo, mostly found in submontane primary forests of Sabah and Sarawak (Malaysia) in north-western part of the island, including in Kelabit Highlands (at elevations above c.1 100 m), Mount Kinabalu (at c.1100-1700 m), and Mount Dulit (at ¢.1200 m).

Food and Feeding. The Borneo Black-banded Squirrel consumes fruits and black ants.

Breeding. There is no information available for this species.

Activity patterns. There is no specific information available for this species, but, the Borneo Black-banded 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 Borneo Black-banded Squirrel has a wide distribution and appears to have a stable population. Some forestloss is occurring throughoutits distribution.

Bibliography. Duckworth, Lee & Tizard (2008c), Payne & Francis (1985), Thorington et al. (2012).