Southern Amazon red squirrel

Southern Amazon red squirrel
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Sciuridae
Genus: Sciurus
Species:
S. spadiceus
Binomial name
Sciurus spadiceus
Olfers, 1818
Subspecies
  • Sciurus spadiceus spadiceus
  • Sciurus spadiceus steinbachi
  • Sciurus spadiceus tricolor

The southern Amazon red squirrel (Sciurus spadiceus), is a squirrel species from South America where it inhabits forests in much of north-western South America east of the Andes. Three subspecies are currently recognised. It is a dark red colour, or a dark brown grizzled with ochre, has whitish underparts and grows to a total length of 48 to 63 cm (19 to 25 in), including a very long tail. It spends much of its time on the ground in the undergrowth and feeds largely on nuts. Little is known of its breeding habits, but it is a sociable species, several individuals often feeding together in one tree. This squirrel faces no particular threats, has a wide range and is relatively common, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature lists it as a "least-concern species".

  1. ^ Cassola, F. (2017) [errata version of 2016 assessment]. "Sciurus spadiceus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T20022A115155594. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T20022A22246240.en. Retrieved 8 April 2021.