Cape ground squirrel
The Cape ground squirrel or South African ground squirrel (Geosciurus inauris) is found in most of the drier parts of southern Africa from South Africa, through to Botswana, and into Namibia, including Etosha National Park.
| Cape ground squirrel | |
|---|---|
| At Krugersdorp Game Reserve, South Africa | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Family: | Sciuridae |
| Genus: | Geosciurus |
| Species: | G. inauris |
| Binomial name | |
| Geosciurus inauris (Zimmerman, 1780) | |
| Cape ground squirrel range | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Xerus inauris | |
The name Cape ground squirrel is somewhat misleading as it actually has a much wider area of habitation. This common name may have been arrived at to distinguish it from a tree squirrel (the eastern grey squirrel) found around Cape Town, which was imported from Europe by Cecil John Rhodes.
The species has also been known as the fan-tailed squirrel.
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