The Navegaon-Nagzira Tiger Reserve (NNTR) is conducting a survey to count the population of Indian giant flying squirrel in the reserve. Indian giant flying squirrel is a native to Southeast Asia and South Asian countries specially China, India, Laos, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. In India, this species are mainly residing in some parts of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, and some parts of Central India. Despite presence in Central India, this species is rarely sighted in Vidarbha region. Therefore, the presence of Indian giant flying squirrel in NNTR is a matter of study.

 

“We have deployed a team including wildlife biologists and forest guards to conduct the survey. It will take five months to complete the survey,” Jayaram Gouda, Field Director, NNTR, told ‘The Hitavada’. “Proper survey of the species will help us to work for its conservation. The Indian giant flying squirrel is nocturnal and arboreal, spending most of its life in the canopy.

 

Therefore, our team is conducting this survey during night time,” said the Field Director. This species is capable of gliding flight using a skin membrane, the patagium, stretched between front and hind legs. India is home to around 17 species of flying squirrels, with 14 of these found in the Northeast. Among them, the Indian giant flying squirrel stands out as one of the largest and most abundant, further adding to the country’s rich wildlife diversity. Couple of days ago, a social media post by an Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer has shared an elusive video capturing a flying squirrel gliding gracefully between trees — a sight rarely seen by many in Pench Tiger Reserve (PTR), Maharashtra.