Southern flying squirrel reports span North Carolina wherever mature hardwood forest provides cavities for nesting. They extend from Piedmont bottomland stands around Uwharrie National Forest to hardwood coves in the Blue Ridge and Smokies and the oak-hickory woods of the Coastal Plain.
It’s a nocturnal glider, not a true flier, using a loose fold of skin between its wrists and ankles to sail between trees rather than flap between them. It nests in tree cavities, especially old woodpecker holes, and in cooler months several squirrels will pack into one den together to share body heat, a habit tied directly to its need for mature trees with existing cavities.
NatureServe ranks the species S5, secure, in North Carolina. Because it is active almost entirely after dark, many people who share a yard with one never see it, and reports remain roughly level through the year rather than showing a sharp seasonal peak.
