Northern Palm Squirrel

Northern Palm Squirrel

Funambulus pennantii

Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability ~50% · Likely
at Dhaka

In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%

41 Verified sightings at Dhaka
139 In all 4 parks From 2019 to 2026
October Best month
🌅 Crepuscular When it's spotted

About the Northern Palm Squirrel

The northern palm squirrel (Funambulus pennantii), also called the five-striped palm squirrel, is a species of rodent in the family Sciuridae. It is a semi-arboreal species found in tropical and subtropical dry deciduous forests and many other rural and urban habitats. It is a common species with a wide range and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being of "least concern".

It is found in the Andaman Islands, Nicobar Islands (where it was introduced), India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Iran. In India, it is fairly common in urban areas, even in large cities such as Delhi and Kolkata. Two subspecies, Funambulus pennantii argentescens and Funambulus pennantii lutescens, were suggested by Wroughton in addition to the nominate race; however, more recent workers do not make this distinction. Wikipedia →

Sounds

Alarm call1:22

India · 1989

© Jelle Scharringa · XC1025104 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Uncertain0:12

India · 2025

© Nick Talbot · XC1063033 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Recording0:35

Pakistan · 2023

© Jawad Hasan · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Keoladeo National Park 🇮🇳 India
~60%
2 Ranthambore National Park 🇮🇳 India
~50%
3 Bandhavgarh National Park 🇮🇳 India
~30%
4 Chitwan National Park 🇳🇵 Nepal
~20%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Agra 🇮🇳 India
~80%
2 Ahmedabad 🇮🇳 India
~80%
3 Jammu 🇮🇳 India
~80%
4 Kathmandu 🇳🇵 Nepal
~70%
5 Jodhpur 🇮🇳 India
~70%
6 New Delhi 🇮🇳 India
~60%
7 Kanpur 🇮🇳 India
~60%
8 Prayagraj 🇮🇳 India
~60%
9 Bhubaneshwar 🇮🇳 India
~60%
10 Varanasi 🇮🇳 India
~60%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Jerusalem Biblical Zoo 🇮🇱 Israel In captivity
2 Jijamata Udyaan 🇮🇳 India In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Northern Palm Squirrel in Dhaka?

Likely

About 50% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Palm Squirrel sighting in Dhaka on a given day, based on 41 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the most-seen of the 7 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Northern Palm Squirrel in Dhaka?

February–March, August and October

In those months about 60% of wildlife watchers report a Northern Palm Squirrel in Dhaka on a given day, against about 30% in July, the lowest month.

What time of day is best to see a Northern Palm Squirrel?

Between 5 and 8 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Northern Palm Squirrel sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.

Is Dhaka the best place to see a Northern Palm Squirrel?

18th of 34

Of the 34 cities where we can rate Northern Palm Squirrel sightings, Dhaka ranks 18th at about 50%. The best odds are in Agra (India, about 80%), Ahmedabad (India, about 80%) and Jammu (India, about 80%).

Where does the Northern Palm Squirrel sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Northern Palm Squirrel is recorded against all the mammals logged in Dhaka (41 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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