Maryland mammals

Southern Flying Squirrel in Maryland

Glaucomys volans

Native to Maryland S5 Secure in Maryland

Not listed as nonindigenous in Maryland by USGS NAS; native to its Maryland range.

IUCN Red List status

  1. LC
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Southern Flying Squirrel-27527-1Southern flying squirrel gripping tree bark at night with gliding membrane visible along its sideSouthern flying squirrel eating scattered seed on a wooden bird-feeder tray at nightLive southern flying squirrel clinging to a broken branch at nightLive southern flying squirrel pressed flat against a tree trunk at night
Photo: Ken Thomas · Public domainSouthern Flying Squirrel-27527-1Photo: Ken Thomas · Public domainSouthern flying squirrel gripping tree bark at night with gliding membrane visible along its sidePhoto: Laurent Bélanger · CC BY-SA 3.0Southern flying squirrel eating scattered seed on a wooden bird-feeder tray at nightPhoto: Hila Taylor · CC BY 4.0Live southern flying squirrel clinging to a broken branch at nightPhoto: Kristof Zyskowski · CC BY 4.0Live southern flying squirrel pressed flat against a tree trunk at night

Southern Flying Squirrel in Maryland, by the numbers

Common in Maryland 24th most recorded of 100 mammals logged in Maryland

168 occurrence records

168 total records count every Maryland occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 166; the monthly chart covers the 164 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Southern Flying Squirrel in Maryland

Most sightings fall in May.

164 Maryland occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly Maryland records (table)
MonthRecords
January15
February9
March11
April16
May28
June10
July11
August13
September12
October18
November11
December10

Monthly southern flying squirrel occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in Maryland.

Seasonality

Year-round in Maryland, with recorded sightings peaking in May, with a smaller rise in October.

Occurrence map

Where Southern Flying Squirrel has been recorded in Maryland

166 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

166 Maryland records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Deep Creek Lake Natural Resource Management Area 1
Catoctin Mountain Park 1

Protected places with the most southern flying squirrel sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in Maryland

CountyRecords
Montgomery County 43
Baltimore County 16
Garrett County 15
Howard County 14
Anne Arundel County 12
Dorchester County 12
Harford County 10
Frederick County 8
Allegany County 7
Queen Anne's County 5
St. Mary's County 4
Cecil County 3
7 other counties 19

The complete county distribution, spread across 19 Maryland counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

Many Maryland reports have been submitted for this species. Places with suitable-looking land include Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge, Assateague Island National Seashore, but report volume reflects where people looked and doesn’t measure population size.

Year-round in Maryland, with no strong seasonal peak in observations.

Occurrence data from GBIF.

Southern Flying Squirrel-27527-1
Full species profile Southern Flying Squirrel Glaucomys volans Size 17.1 cm6.7 in Weight 65 g2.3 oz Lifespan Up to 19 yr View the full profile

More mammals in Maryland in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

  • GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
  • iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
  • NatureServe ExplorerCC-BYthe state conservation rank
  • IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
  • USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
  • Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
  • USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
  • USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"