New dietary records for the rare Thomas’s Flying Squirrel (Aeromys thomasi, Sciuridae: Pteromyini) from Sabah, Malaysian Borneo

Abstract

Thomas’s Flying Squirrel (Aeromys thomasi) is a rarely observed, large, nocturnal species of Flying Squirrel, confined to the island of Borneo. Very little is known about the ecology, behaviour, and natural history of the species. Fruit is the only diet item recorded so far. I report for the first time feeding on bark and on young leaf shoots by the species. These observations match the results of an examination of the species’ dentition, which had suggested a mixed diet including leaves.