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Northern Flying Squirrel

Glaucomys sabrinus

Description:

There are two different types of flying squirrel in North America, the northern flying squirrel which I have spotted here, and the southern flying squirrel which is generally smaller. They are nocturnal rodents with thick light brown or cinnamon fur on their upper body. A furry membrane called a patagium extends between the front and rear leg and allows the animal to glide through the air. It's greyish on the flanks and whitish underneath. They have large eyes and a flat tail. They can also be identified by their long whiskers, common to nocturnal mammals. The adult northern flying squirrel measures from 25 to 37 cm long, and their weight can range from 110 to 230 grams. Although they are called flying squirrels they can not actually fly, but glide from tree to tree. If you ever have a chance to see them you will find that they glide at a remarkably fast speed.

Habitat:

The Northern flying squirrel is found in coniferous and mixed forests across the top of North America.

Notes:

This cute little flying squirrel spends his evenings dining at my squirrel and bird feeders. They generally only come out between the hours of 10pm and 2am in the middle of winter, and between Midnight and 2am during the summer months.

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20 Comments

KarenL
KarenL 11 years ago

Adorable! Nice photos Bill!

JanelleL.Streed
JanelleL.Streed 11 years ago

Ah! I'm sooo jealous of you, willie! We had one here, three years ago, but I never got a decent image to share. You nail it, my friend! Bravo!!!

williefromwi
williefromwi 11 years ago

Thanks for the wonderful comments Naomichan, EmilyMarino, Brian Sowers, NoelSal, and Alicelongmartin. Alice, because they spend many evenings in my yard, I wait until they are more active, and then spend an hour or more trying to get a few nice captures of them. Most of my photos take a good amount of time in the field to be able to bring them to you for your viewing pleasure. Some of my goals in posting them here is to spur on the love of nature, the beauty of creation, and perhaps some further education into the species I post. I like to say that I try to make what many might consider ordinary and attempt to make it extraordinary. Sometimes I am blessed and I succeed in that endeavor.

alicelongmartin
alicelongmartin 11 years ago

These are perfect pictures. You must know what is going on all night long!

NoelSal
NoelSal 11 years ago

the squirrel have nice eyes

Brian Sowers
Brian Sowers 11 years ago

Love! Very nice shot, I think they are very cool.

EmilyMarino
EmilyMarino 11 years ago

Bravo Willie! Another superb shot!

naomichan
naomichan 11 years ago

i just love squirrels. very nice.

williefromwi
williefromwi 11 years ago

Thanks IsabellaFiers, Emma, and joshuaharris707 for your comments

Josh Asel
Josh Asel 11 years ago

aaahhhh yyeeeeuuuhhh.

Hema  Shah
Hema Shah 11 years ago

too cute!!!

IsabellaFiers
IsabellaFiers 11 years ago

Extremely beautiful !!

williefromwi
williefromwi 11 years ago

Adam I have seen them glide many nights. I have tried a few times to capture them while the glide, and have given up for the moment. I have been to Colorado several times and have family that lives there, but I live in Wisconsin.

AdamBrown
AdamBrown 11 years ago

wow! I'd love to see one gliding? Do they live in Colorado by chance?

williefromwi
williefromwi 11 years ago

Thanks Nuwan, for the reminder, I am still so new here, I am trying my best to add them to missions, but often forget, or am not fully aware of all the missions. I sure wish they had one or two pages with the lists of the missions and then a general comment about its goals. Simple and streamlined. I will add it now.

Thanks ChristyHolland

ChristyHolland
ChristyHolland 11 years ago

Beautiful! These are the kind of creatures that just make you want to melt! So cute!

NuwanChathuranga
NuwanChathuranga 11 years ago

so cute! don't forget the mission "Project squirrel @ http://www.projectnoah.org/missions/3600...

williefromwi
williefromwi 11 years ago

Courtney, I am blessed to live in a very wooded yard. I have many trees on my small lot, many with hollows in them. I am not certain where they live, but can see or hear them many nights, if I stay up late enough. They come to my squirrel feeders or my bird feeders quite often.

CourtneyVerk
CourtneyVerk 11 years ago

How did you find this spotting? I've heard that you should look for dead trees with open cavities. Also heard that if you knock on the wood they are likely to come out and see who's there.

MayraSpringmann
MayraSpringmann 11 years ago

Very pretty!

williefromwi
Spotted by
williefromwi

Wisconsin, USA

Spotted on Feb 9, 2012
Submitted on Jun 14, 2012

Spotted for Mission

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