Sciurus niger

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	MAMMALIA	RODENTIA	SCIURIDAE

Scientific Name:

Sciurus niger

Species Authority:

Linnaeus, 1758

Common Name/s:

English

–

Bryant's Fox Squirrel, Delmarva Fox Squirrel, Eastern Fox Squirrel, Fox Squirrel

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Least Concern ver 3.1

Year Assessed:

2008

Assessor/s

Linzey, A.V., Timm, R., Emmons, L. & Reid, F.

Evaluator/s:

McKnight, M. (Global Mammal Assessment Team) & Amori, G. (Small Nonvolant Mammal Red List Authority)

Justification:
This species is listed as Least Concern in view of its wide distribution, presumed large population, occurrence in a number of protected areas, and because it is unlikely to be declining at nearly the rate required to qualify for listing in a threatened category.

History:

2000	–	Lower Risk/least concern (Hilton-Taylor 2000)
1996	–	Lower Risk/least concern (Baillie and Groombridge 1996)

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	This species is native throughout much of the eastern United States and very limited areas of adjoining Canada (extreme southern prairie provinces) and Mexico (occurs along the Rio Grande and its tributaries in northeastern Coahuila y Nuevo Leon (Ceballos and Oliva 2005)). It has been introduced to several western U.S. states and two Canadian provinces (British Columbia and Ontario).
Countries:	Native: Canada; Mexico; United States
Range Map:	(click map to view full version)

Population [top]

Population:	Abundant. Reported densities vary from 0.04 - 0.12 individuals/ha in the southeastern U.S. to 1.0 - 12 individuals/ha in the mid-west.
Population Trend:	Stable

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	This species prefers open woodland habitats, with scattered trees and open understory.
Systems:	Terrestrial

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	No major threats known. Although not considered a major threat at this time, this species is experiencing declining habitats in eastern states, with an increasingly restricted distribution. By contrast, range expansion has occurred in the mid-west. In Mexico, it may be considered fragile, but is not officially threatened (Ceballos and Oliva 2005).

Major Threat(s):

No major threats known. Although not considered a major threat at this time, this species is experiencing declining habitats in eastern states, with an increasingly restricted distribution. By contrast, range expansion has occurred in the mid-west. In Mexico, it may be considered fragile, but is not officially threatened (Ceballos and Oliva 2005).

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	Occurs in many protected areas.

Conservation Actions:

Occurs in many protected areas.

Citation:	Linzey, A.V., Timm, R., Emmons, L. & Reid, F. 2008. Sciurus niger. In: IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 09 January 2009.
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