In the rainforest of Borneo , whispers echo of a legendary lamia so fierce it can take down fair game many time its sizing . It has saw - same teeth , ingest the blood and electronic organ of its victims , and yet is rarely come across . What is this fearsome creature , you ask ? Er , it ’s a squirrel .
The Bornean tufted priming squirrel ( Rheithrosciurus macrotis ) got its menacing reputation back in 2014 after an article on the subtle critter inSciencecalled them “ lamia squirrel ” . According to Science , local legends tell tales of the squirrel perching on low branches to jump on unsuspicious cervid , lash their jugular vein , disemboweling them , and eating their reed organ .
Now , scientists have carried out thefirst - ever studyon the feeding behavior of tufted dry land squirrel ( TGS ) and break its dietary habits . R. macrotisdoes indeed have a highly specialized diet ; it appear to run almost entirely on the hardest seeds discover in the rain forest .
research worker lead by Andrew Marshall of the University of Michigan studied the elusive squirrel in their natural rainforest habitat in Gunung Palung National Park , Borneo , over a bit of years , note them feeding 79 multiplication . Though the team never witnessed the squirrel assail anymuntjacs(an Asiatic cervid about the size of it of a small dog ) , they were surprised to strike they had a highly specialised diet , feed chiefly on the seed ofC. decumanumandM. leptopoda , two plants known for having the hardest seed in the forest . Compared to the multiple other animals whose feeding they observed , the researchers argue their findings suggest when it comes to feeding , the ground squirrel is the most specialized taxonomic group in the forest .
" We ’re peach germ so hard that a strong man with a hammer would have to operate pretty heavily to get into one , " Marshall told IFLScience .
" We have close to the largest and humble squirrel species in the world at our site , and a total multifariousness of at least a dozen species . This would presumably lead to acute rivalry and the need to specialise to carve out their own niche . The very heavy seeded player they devour are untouchable to virtually all other species , think the rival for them would be more limited than it would be feeding on easier - to - procedure seed and yield . "
OK , so not a lamia , but the tufted ground squirrel is a truly eldritch creature in many other ways . " Their biogeographical history is an brain-teaser , " Marshall state IFLScience . " They are most closely related to to South American squirrel and seem to have split from them over 8 million years ago . presumptively they would have had to colonize Southeast Asia across state , yet they left no fogey ( or living ) ancestors in North America or mainland Asia . It ’s a genuine mystifier . "
It also has strange tooth ; long incisors in the upper and depressed jaw that have chip at ridge like a saw border . " The sawlike teeth of TGS seemunlike anything record in other mammals , " Marshall suppose . " [ I]t , therefore , digest to cause that they are specialized adaptations to their unco specialised diets . "
good of all , however , is the fact the tufted ground squirrel has theworld ’s fluffiest tail . In fact , its tail is 30 percent more voluminous than the rest of its physical structure , according to a2014 study .
The tufted squirrel is doubly the size of regular Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree squirrels , around 35 centimeters ( 13.8 inches ) long , with its bushy , silvery tail adding a further 30 centimetre ( 11.8 inches ) . When move , the tail obscures the soundbox , progress to it appear much larger than it is , peradventure to fox vulture like cloud-covered leopards . It could also be to prevent marauder from getting a expert grasp , the recollective downy whisker fooling them into thinking there was something solid to hold onto .
There are still so many things we do n’t cognize about this occult , problematical tool and prison term could be run out , the researchers admonish .
" With forests in Indonesia and across the tropics being drop off at alarming rates we start the risk of lose metal money before we can pile up even the most canonic information about their environmental science , " Marshall and fellow worker write in their work .
" R. macrotispossesses several extremely strange features that make it a legitimate subject of serious research aid . In this context , it is unfeignedly remarkable how small we know about the species – although our evidence suggests that ' assassin squirrel ' would be a skilful soubriquet than ' vampire squirrel ' . "
I do n’t bonk about you , but I am all for finding out more about the elusive Bornean assassin squirrel .
