Sumatran mountain squirrel

The Sumatran mountain squirrel (Sundasciurus altitudinis) is a squirrel of the family Sciuridae, known from western Sumatra on Mount Leuser and Mount Kerinci in the Barisan Mountains. It was originally described by Robinson and Kloss in 1916 and for a long time was treated as a subspecies of the slender squirrel, Sundasciurus tenuis, before being recognised as a species in its own right. The head and body measure about 150 mm and the tail about 115 mm, and its skull reaches 41 to 43 mm, overlapping with that of the Palawan montane squirrel. The back is speckled brownish and the belly light gray; it resembles the slender squirrel but has a lighter belly, more yellowish feet and longer fur. It lives in heavy jungle through all forest strata, from low bushes to the higher canopy, at about 488 to 2530 m, and it is known to eat acorn-like nuts that local people call giseng. It has not yet been assessed as a distinct species on the IUCN Red List.