Rare Giant Flying Squirrel, Native Of Western Ghats, Finds Home In Chhattisgarh Reserve Forest
“The return of the rare species is ecologically significant because it depends on highly specific forest conditions”: Reports
Raipur: A rare Indian giant flying squirrel, a native of Western Ghats, has found a new home in an unlikely area — the Udanti- Sitanadi tiger reserve (USTR) in Chhattisgarh. The squirrel, first seen in the reserve a few months back, and now being sighted frequently which indicates the health of the forest, USTR deputy director Varun Kumar Jain told this newspaper on Sunday.
“The return of the rare species is ecologically significant because it depends on highly specific forest conditions,” officer said. The flying squirrel is different from the normal squirrel physically and behaviorally and survives only where tree canopies remain continuously connected.
Unlike common squirrels that frequently descend to ground, this species moves almost entirely through the upper forest layer — jumping or gliding from branch to branch — through what forest ecologists call “arboreal highways”. These interconnected canopy corridors serve like natural aerial transport routes for the species.
The moment canopy continuity breaks because of illegal tree felling, encroachment, road construction, or habitat fragmentation, the particular squirrel species lose mobility, feeding access, breeding space, and protection from predators.
The particular squirrel species hydrate itself by consuming juicy fruits, not by drinking water, and live in the wild. It is larger in size than the normal squirrel.
“The Central Indian Highlands form a critical ecological bridge connecting the Western Ghats, the Eastern Ghats, and Himalayan landscapes. This faunal bridge allows certain rare species like Indian giant flying squirrel to extend their home ranges across connected forest belts”, Jain said while explaining the presence of the rare squirrel species in the USTR.
The USTR has an estimated population of 400 flying squirrels. “We have launched a campaign, christened as ‘weaving back squirrel canopies’, to plant big trees to ensure that its habitat improves further”, Jain said.
The USTR has also launched measures for its conservation by cracking down on the poachers of the species in the reserve forest. Around two dozen poachers have been arrested in half-a-dozen cases of poaching in the last one year, he said.