The black giant squirrel, Ratufa bicolor, is one of the largest squirrels in the world. It is native to forested parts of South and Southeast Asia, including northeast India, Nepal, Bhutan, southern China, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and parts of Indonesia.
This squirrel is easy to recognize by its strong two-tone coloring. The back, head, ears, and long bushy tail are usually dark brown to black, while the belly is pale buff or cream. Adults can have a head-and-body length of more than a foot, with a tail nearly as long as the body.
Black giant squirrels are active during the day and spend most of their lives high in the forest canopy. They are excellent climbers and leap between branches with confidence, but they may come lower or even reach the ground when searching for food.
Their diet is mostly plant-based and includes fruits, seeds, nuts, leaves, and sometimes bark or flowers. They help forest plants by carrying and dropping seeds as they feed, making them a useful part of the forest community.
They usually live alone or in pairs and build leafy nests, called dreys, in trees or use tree cavities for shelter. The species is considered Near Threatened because it depends on mature forests that are being reduced by logging, farming, settlement, and hunting in parts of its range.