Horse-tailed Squirrel
Sundasciurus hippurus
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassMammalia (Mammals)
- OrderRodentia (Rodents)
- FamilySciuridae (Squirrels)
- GenusSundasciurus (Sunda Tree Squirrels)
- SpeciesSundasciurus hippurus (Horse-tailed Squirrel)
About the Horse-tailed Squirrel
The horse-tailed squirrel (Sundasciurus hippurus) is a species of rodent in the family Sciuridae. It is found throughout the islands of Borneo and Sumatra, as well as the southern half of the Malay Peninsula, which includes the entire nations of Brunei and Malaysia, as well as some areas of Indonesia and Thailand. There was a mention of this squirrel being found in Vietnam in 1831 (I. Geoffroy, 1831), but subsequent descriptions of this squirrel's range have not included that nation.
The horse-tailed squirrel is the most colorful and largest of the Sundasciurus tree squirrels. It is a medium-sized squirrel with a head-to-body length of 21.5 to 25 cm (8.5 to 9.8 in) and a tail length of 24 to 29 cm (9.5 to 11.5 in). The horse-tailed squirrel has a grizzled grey head, shoulders, forefeet and body with a whitish, dull orange, or red-brown underbelly. The tail of this squirrel is commonly a glossy black or grey banded with black. Wikipedia →
Closest Relatives at Gunung Leuser National Park
Slender Squirrel
Sundasciurus tenuis
Sumatran Mountain Squirrel
Sundasciurus altitudinis
Plantain Squirrel
Callosciurus notatus
Prevost's Squirrel
Callosciurus prevostii
Black Giant Squirrel
Ratufa bicolor
Black-striped Squirrel
Callosciurus nigrovittatus
Pale Giant Squirrel
Ratufa affinis
Three-striped Ground Squirrel
Lariscus insignis
Red Giant Flying Squirrel
Petaurista petaurista
Malayan Porcupine
Hystrix brachyura
Sumatran Mountain Maxomys
Maxomys hylomyoides
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Taman Negara National Park | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 2 | Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 3 | Gunung Leuser National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia |