Nilgiri Palm Squirrel (Funambulus sublineatus) lives in tropical rainforest across South India. It feeds on nuts and seeds. Its conservation status is Vulnerable.
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The Nilgiri striped squirrel is classified as a threatened rodent and inhabits the rain-filled forests of the southern Western Ghats, including the Nilgiris, in Peninsular India. It lives in wet, humid forest patches that stretch across the Western Ghats and Nilgiri hills and even reach surrounding areas such as Kodaikanal.
Before 2012 the taxon was thought to occur in both India and Sri Lanka, but the 2012 review split the populations into separate species. As a result, the Nilgiri striped squirrel is now confined solely to the Western Ghats of India, no longer recorded in Sri Lanka. Its range is limited to the wet, humid forests of that mountain chain, making it an endemic mammal whose distribution must be updated in all records.
Very little is known about the Nilgiri striped squirrel, which is probably the smallest member of its genus. Individuals weigh about 40 g, making them notably lighter than other Funambulus species. Their diminutive size and the scarcity of observations mean that many aspects of their behaviour, diet and breeding remain undocumented, highlighting the need for focused research on this little-studied rodent.
A 2012 review concluded that the Indian and Sri Lankan forms of the striped squirrel were highly distinct, prompting a recommendation to treat them as separate species. This assessment built on a complex taxonomic history that began when Funambulus sublineatus was first described in 1838 and later merged with the Sri Lankan obscurus as a subspecies. The authors' recommendation marked a decisive shift, formally separating the two lineages after decades of confusion.
The Nilgiri striped squirrel once encompassed the Sri Lankan Funambulus obscurus as a subspecies, and during that period the combined taxon was known as the dusky striped squirrel. After detailed study the two were split, and the name dusky striped squirrel is now applied solely to the Sri Lankan species. This taxonomic revision reflects the distinctiveness of each population and clarifies that the Indian form retains the name Nilgiri striped squirrel.
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In the misty, montane forests of the Western Ghats, the Nilgiri Palm Squirrel dances through the trees with an effortless elegance, its chestnut fur fluffed against the chill as it leaps from branch to branch with precision and agility. As it moves, the dappled sunlight catches its vibrant orange underbelly, illuminating a flash of warmth in the cool, shaded canopy, and for a fleeting moment, this diminutive, vulnerable creature is a blaze of life and color. With its large, round eyes watchful and alert, the Nilgiri Palm Squirrel navigates its fragile, threatened world with a quiet, unassuming beauty.
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