Oklahoma’s occurrence databases hold 21 records for the southern flying squirrel, among the sparser records of any mapped Oklahoma mammal. NatureServe ranks it S3, Vulnerable, in the state, and the records here sit at the drier western edge of a species that can’t get by without continuous forest.
A forest specialist at the edge of its range
This squirrel glides between trees on a furred skin membrane, so it needs a nearly unbroken canopy to move safely and feed. That requirement ties it to the oak-hickory forest of the Ouachita National Forest and the wooded Cross Timbers belt across the eastern and central parts of the state, and it largely drops out west of there, where open prairie breaks up the canopy it depends on. Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge and Tallgrass Prairie Preserve, both more open country, don’t fall inside that core forested range.
Communal dens and a mast-based diet
Southern flying squirrels den in old woodpecker holes and other tree cavities, and in winter several animals often huddle together in one den to conserve body heat. They feed heavily on hickory nuts, acorns, and other hard mast, along with fungi and insects, all resources tied directly to the mature hardwood stands they need.
Status in Oklahoma
NatureServe ranks this species S3, Vulnerable, in Oklahoma, in keeping with its limited hold on the state’s forested east, and it’s native to Oklahoma.
