Paraxerus palliatus
Silhouette: Joseph Smit · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~70% in a week >90%
The red bush squirrel or red-bellied coast squirrel (Paraxerus palliatus) is a species of rodent in the family Sciuridae, which is found in bush and forest along the eastern seaboard of Africa. It is closely related to P. lucifer, P. vexillarius and P. (p.) vincenti.
It is native to Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and South Africa. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, and subtropical or tropical dry shrubland.
The species is smaller (and weighs less) with more rufous pelage in dry forest, and larger and darker in moist forest. Wikipedia →
Recording1:02
South Africa · 2024
© magdastlucia · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | uMkhuze Game Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
No species of the same family or order lives in uMkhuze Game Reserve, so these are its closest relatives here: other mammals.
Likely
About 40% of wildlife watchers report a Red Bush Squirrel sighting in uMkhuze Game Reserve on a given day, based on 18 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 15th most-seen of the 26 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 70%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
April
In that month about 60% of wildlife watchers report a Red Bush Squirrel in uMkhuze Game Reserve on a given day, against under 5% in January, May and August, the lowest months.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Red Bush Squirrel sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Red Bush Squirrel sightings, uMkhuze Game Reserve has the highest daily chance: about 40%. Next come iSimangaliso Wetland Park (South Africa, about 20%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Red Bush Squirrel is recorded against all the mammals logged in uMkhuze Game Reserve (18 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
