Indian Rainbow Squirrel: The World's Largest Squirrel

Indian giant squirrel: The 'rainbow' rodent that is also the world's largest squirrel
www.livescience.com...

Indian giant squirrels, with their extraordinarily colorful fur, are found in forests and woodlands of India.

Name: Indian giant squirrel or Malabar giant squirrel (Ratufa indica), nicknamed the rainbow squirrel

Where it lives: Forests and woodlands in pockets across central and southern India

What it eats: Fruits, leaves, bark, seeds, occasionally bird eggs and insects.

Why it's awesome: Although the stomach and arms of Indian giant squirrels are a creamy-beige color, the rest of their pelage is a little more fancy — with hues of orange, purple and red — which is why they are nicknamed "rainbow squirrels."
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Just thought to share this interesting squirrel found in India...now these tree 'rodents' are pretty big LOL Generally when I think of squirrels I'm so used to living along the side of the smaller/cuter version here.

Up here in Canada:

Tree squirrels found in Canada range in size from 10 to 70 cm long (2 to 27.5 inches). They have bushy tails, are adept climbers, and may appear rust-coloured, brown, grey, or black. Ground squirrels can be similar in size to tree squirrels or significantly larger.

The largest squirrels found in Canada are Hoary Marmots, sometimes called “whistle pigs” for the high-pitched sound they make when threatened. Hoary Marmots can be up to 80 centimetres (31.5 inches) long and weigh six kilograms.

Around my part of Canada we generally see the grey squirrel which is the most common type..still cute though. I think I'd rather play with the ones in Canada than in India hahah

Beware lols. a reply to: Skywatcher2011

dp

a reply to: Skywatcher2011

Psychedelic Squirrels ! ... cool , makes me want to spray paint the Grey Squirrels in my garden.

a reply to: bluemooone44

that is too funny

My dad shot a fox squirrel one time back in the sixties. They were illegal to shoot, but he thought it was a different kind of animal. We hung it in the back shed to age after cleaning it. It must have been almost four feet long nose to tail. He skinned it and it fed our family of five....roasted in a roaster with potatoes, carrots, and onions. It tasted like really good quality chicken.

It was illegal to shoot it, but once it was mistakenly shot he would not waste the meat. He was very against shooting animals for sport, it was a waste to take a life then waste it. So he took a chance to keep it so it's death would not be in vain and we ate it. I am the same way, I learned from here that you do not kill anything unless you need to, if you eat it it supplies you with food, if it threatens your life, it is also a good reason. I am a hunter, but do not shoot anything just for sport, I cut the deer up and waste very little, if you bring it to a butcher you get half as much as I get from processing it most times.

I have not shot a deer in many years now, we buy a half cow, so we do not need the meat. I have not shot anything but a raccoon that was causing damage here in the last twenty years. I did not eat the raccoon, It was trying to drag the live trap into the woods, it could not even get it's head into the livetrap...it weighed thirty five pounds. I buried it in a dug grave. It was a menace, and would not listen to reason even though it seemed it knew exactly what I was saying. Raccoons are more ignorant than house cats or humans

The world is sometimes an amazing place filled with amazing creatures. I wonder what Pokémon Gym you have to go to, to fight and get one of those…a reply to: Skywatcher2011

I was brought up hunting too. I have a policy of not hunting animals that are incapable of really harming me. Deer on the other hand… Here in the Midwest, we get the corn fed deer or farm fed deer that eat leftover crops. They get fat, and large and if they decide they want to jump out in front of you while driving they can kill you. Squirrels, and rabbits are barely enough calories to justify hunting them, but are game none the less. Most of our forests are empty thanks to the influx of people whose cultures allow drive type hunting where 30 of them get together and drive all the animals to a kill box. There are three preserves on state land that are pin drop quiet because there aren’t any animals. Unless you count insects and the stray wild bird.

Thankfully I have a place or two out of state I can hunt on, that doesn’t have those issues. a reply to: rickymouse

That's one cool looking squirrel.

How come Indian squirrels get little safety vests/high visibility onesies and our squirrels don't???
# Squirrel Lives Matter.
Kudo's to whoever managed to Tie-Dye a squirrel!

a reply to: Skywatcher2011

Yeah , they Look Big , but are they as Manly as North American Squirrels ? ..............*)

The North American Tree Squirrel is a shy one but is good size too.