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Protoxerus stangeri Waterhouse, 1842

Order: Rodentia > Family: Sciuridae > Genus: Protoxerus > Species: Protoxerus stangeri Waterhouse, 1842

Common Name: African Giant Squirrel [English]

Type Description

Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., [ser.1], 10:202 (footnote).

Type Locality

Equatorial Guinea, Bioko. '. . . Brought from Fernando Po. . .'.

Measurements

Head and body: 220-306 mm
Tail length: 260-355 mm
Weight: 545-734 g

Description

The sparsely furred underside and large size distinguish this squirrel from others. This species is found in forests in western Tanzania.

Distribution

Exclusively limited to well-developed forests and swamps in tropical areas up to 2,000 m, Protoxerus stangeri is distributed throughout the equatorial zone from Sierra Leona and Liberia in the west across the equator to Uganda and northwest Tanzania in the East. (Kingdon, 1984, 1997)

Key References

1. Kingdon, J. 1984. East African mammals: An atlas of evolution in Africa. (Hares and Rodents). University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 2B:431-435.
2. Kingdon, J. 1997. The Kingdon field guide to African mammals, AP Natural World Academic Press, Harcourt Brace & Company, San Diego, p. 173-174.
3. Nowak, R. M. 1999. Walker's Mammals of the World. Sixth ed. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 2:1246, 1275-1276.