Tree squirrel

Uncommon card · No. 126840

Tree squirrels are the members of the squirrel family (Sciuridae) commonly just referred to as "squirrels". They include more than 100 arboreal species native to all continents except Antarctica and Oceania. They do not form a single natural, or monophyletic, group; they are variously related to others in the squirrel family, including ground squirrels, flying squirrels, marmots, and chipmunks. The defining characteristic used to determine which species of Sciuridae are tree squirrels is dependent on their habitat rather than their physiology. Tree squirrels live mostly among trees, as opposed to those that live in burrows in the ground or among rocks. An exception is the flying squirrel, which also lives in trees but is distinguished from other tree squirrels by a specialized physiological adaptation: folds of skin called patagia that extend between the limbs and function as gliding surfaces, allowing the animal to glide between trees. The best-known genus of tree squirrels is Sciurus...

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