Flying Squirrels

One of my favourite PEI animals is seldom seen despite being fairly common: the Northern Flying Squirrel (Glaucomys sabrinus), shown here in a photo by Ron Serres (used with permission). 

Flying Squirrels are beautiful, large-eyed, soft-furred animals, with a flap of skin (called a ‘patagium’) running from wrists to ankles on each side. That flap allows them to glide 50 metres or more between trees in the forest and has been copied by the wingsuits used by some BASE jumpers. 

While we usually think of rodents as being short-lived, high-reproductive animals, that’s not the case here. Flying Squirrels can live seven years or more, don’t breed until they’re a year old, and have only one or two small litters a year. As a result, they’re much more sensitive to disturbance than many of their cousins, such as mice, voles, rats, and Red Squirrels. 

Flying Squirrels live in mature forests and play important roles in the ecosystem. True omnivores, they eat seeds, fruit, nuts, fungi, lichens, insects, bird eggs, young birds, small mammals, and even carcasses they may find. Of that extensive menu, lichens and fungi are their favourites. When Flying Squirrels munch on nitrogen-fixing species (such as the Lung Lichen we looked at in my last post), they help distribute it and enrich forest soils. By digging up and eating the mycorrhizal fungi that help trees absorb water and nutrients, Flying Squirrels not only help those fungi spread but also contribute to tree growth and health. 

Flying Squirrels are nocturnal, and those large eyes give them excellent night vision. Their night-owl habits mean many people have never seen one. I occasionally see Flying Squirrels at my bird feeders, with the nighttime ruckus raised by my indoor cats alerting me to their presence! 

These squirrels nest in tree cavities, and – if you’re lucky – knocking on a cavity tree in a mature forest can cause one to pop its head out and look at you. They’re not particularly bothered by people, or by others of their kind. Outside the breeding season, their homes are communal and shared around like Airbnbs. They are also easily handled if you need to move one out of harm’s way. 

Many people don’t realize we have Flying Squirrels on the Island, but they are beautiful and important members of PEI Untamed!