Funambulus layardi (Blyth, 1849)
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publication ID |
https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6840226 |
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DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6818634 |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/064D0660-FFC5-ED38-FF13-F5D5F922F5D9 |
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treatment provided by |
Diego |
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scientific name |
Funambulus layardi |
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Layard’s Palm Squirrel
Funambulus layardi View in CoL
French: Ecureuil de Layard / German: Layard-Palmenhdérnchen / Spanish: Ardilla de palma de Layard
Taxonomy. Sciurus layard: Blyth, 1849 ,
“Upland districts”
(Sri Lanka). Restrict-
ed by O. Thomas in 1924 to “Ambigamoa Hills...Central Province (7°N., 80° 3K)...”
This species is monotypic.
Distribution. SW & C Sri Lanka.
Descriptive notes. Head-body mean 144 mm (males) and 154 mm (females), tail mean 158 mm (males) and 168 mm (females); weight mean c.168 g. Layard’s Palm Squirrel has the most colorful pelage in the genus, with three longitudinal stripes on dorsum, in which middle stripe, and sometimes outerstripes, are a bright orange-yellow. Venter is a vivid yellow-orange, chestnut or russet, with a red mid-ventral stripe on tail.
Habitat. Tropical and subtropical montane evergreen forests and lowland rainforests.
Food and Feeding. There is no information available for this species.
Breeding. There is no specific information available for this species, but litter size of Layard’s Palm Squirrel usually is 2-3 young.
Activity patterns. There is no specific information available for this species, but the Layard’s Palm Squirrel is diurnal and arboreal.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. There is no information available for this species.
Status and Conservation. Classified as Vulnerable on The IUCN Red List. Layard’s Palm Squirrel is restricted to a few severely fragmented locations (Knuckles Range, C highlands, and near Matara on the coast), and presents a declining population trend due to habitat loss and degradation,the results of selective logging, large wood plantations, and forestfires.
Bibliography. Goonatilake (2005), Goonatilake et al. (2008), Johnsingh & Manjrekar (2015), Thomas (1924a), Thorington et al. (2012).
No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.
