Geographic Range
Paraxerus lucifer
is native to the Ethiopian Region. It has been found in the Misuku Hills and Nyika
Plateau of Northern Malawi, as well as the Poroto Mountains and Nkoko Forest of Southwestern
Tanzania. It is suspected to also be found in the Mafinga and Makutu Mountains of
Northeastern Zambia.
Habitat
- Habitat Regions
- tropical
- terrestrial
- Terrestrial Biomes
- rainforest
- mountains
Physical Description
Paraxerus lucifer is the largest of the three species of Tanganyika mountain squirrel. Most easily distinguishable by its distinctly red-orange to rufous coat with a single, fairly large black spot on the center of its back. Face and forelimbs are a bright orange. The tail is composed of guard hairs with a black base and rufous tip, undercoat mostly rufous, forming a subtle black barring pattern. The fur on its underside is a silver-tipped dove-grey.
This coloration lends the species its common name; the Black-and-Red Bush Squirrel.
- Other Physical Features
- endothermic
- homoiothermic
- bilateral symmetry
- Sexual Dimorphism
- sexes alike
Reproduction
- Key Reproductive Features
- seasonal breeding
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
Lifespan/Longevity
Behavior
Communication and Perception
Food Habits
- Plant Foods
- leaves
- seeds, grains, and nuts
- fruit
- nectar
- flowers
- Foraging Behavior
- stores or caches food
Predation
Ecosystem Roles
- Ecosystem Impact
- disperses seeds
- Libyastus fleas
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
- Positive Impacts
- ecotourism
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
Conservation Status
Most of the populations live in or around protected areas naturally, and it is suspected
that the species currently exists at healthy population levels. This natural population
is rather small, however, and as such vulnerable to rapid collapse should conditions
change.
Additional Links
Contributors
David Hazlett (author), Miami University, Joseph Baumgartner (editor), Miami University, Tanya Dewey (editor), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.
- Ethiopian
-
living in sub-Saharan Africa (south of 30 degrees north) and Madagascar.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- tropical
-
the region of the earth that surrounds the equator, from 23.5 degrees north to 23.5 degrees south.
- terrestrial
-
Living on the ground.
- rainforest
-
rainforests, both temperate and tropical, are dominated by trees often forming a closed canopy with little light reaching the ground. Epiphytes and climbing plants are also abundant. Precipitation is typically not limiting, but may be somewhat seasonal.
- mountains
-
This terrestrial biome includes summits of high mountains, either without vegetation or covered by low, tundra-like vegetation.
- endothermic
-
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- seasonal breeding
-
breeding is confined to a particular season
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- arboreal
-
Referring to an animal that lives in trees; tree-climbing.
- diurnal
-
- active during the day, 2. lasting for one day.
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- stores or caches food
-
places a food item in a special place to be eaten later. Also called "hoarding"
- ecotourism
-
humans benefit economically by promoting tourism that focuses on the appreciation of natural areas or animals. Ecotourism implies that there are existing programs that profit from the appreciation of natural areas or animals.
- carnivore
-
an animal that mainly eats meat
- insectivore
-
An animal that eats mainly insects or spiders.
- herbivore
-
An animal that eats mainly plants or parts of plants.
- folivore
-
an animal that mainly eats leaves.
- frugivore
-
an animal that mainly eats fruit
- granivore
-
an animal that mainly eats seeds
- omnivore
-
an animal that mainly eats all kinds of things, including plants and animals
References
Kingdon, J., D. Happold, T. Butynski, M. Hoffmann, M. Happold, J. Kalina. 2013. Mammals of Africa, Volumes 1-6 . London: Bloomsbury Publishing. Accessed March 15, 2015 at https://books.google.com/books?id=B_07noCPc4kC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false .
Kingdon, J. 1997. The Kingdon Field Guide to African Mammals . London: Bloomsbury Publishing. Accessed March 15, 2015 at http://books.google.com/books?id=1TBLAAAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false .
Thorington, R., J. Koprowski, M. Steele, J. Whatton. 2012. Squirrels of the World . Baltimore, Maryland, USA: Johns Hopkins University Press. Accessed March 15, 2015 at http://muse.jhu.edu/books/9781421408682 .
Wilson, D., D. Reeder, R. Thorington, R. Hoffman. 2005. Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference . Baltimore, Maryland, USA: Johns Hopkins University Press. Accessed March 15, 2015 at https://books.google.com/books?id=YnYED-YG0ZYC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false .