Sun squirrels (genusHeliosciurus), form a taxon of squirrels under the subfamily Xerinae and the tribe Protoxerini. They are only found in sub-Saharan Africa. The Pleistocene epoch (IPA: ) is part of the geologic timescale. ... Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. ... Animalia redirects here. ... Typical Classes See below Chordates (phylum Chordata) are a group of animals that includes the vertebrates, together with several closely related invertebrates. ... Subclasses Subclass Allotheria* Order Docodonta (extinct) Order Multituberculata (extinct) Order Palaeoryctoides (extinct) Order Triconodonta (extinct) Order Volaticotheria (extinct) Subclass Prototheria Order Monotremata Subclass Theria Infraclass Trituberculata (extinct) Infraclass Metatheria Infraclass Eutheria The mammals are the class of vertebrate animals characterized by the production of milk in females for the nourishment... Suborders Sciuromorpha Castorimorpha Myomorpha Anomaluromorpha Hystricomorpha Rodentia is an order of mammals also known as rodents. ... Genera Many: see text. ... In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biodiversity. ... For other uses of the word, please see Genus (disambiguation). ... Genera Many, see the article Sciuridae. ... A world map showing the continent of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. ...
The habit of basking in the sun on tree branches probably gave this group its common name.
Sun squirrels have been implicated in the spread of human monkeypox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Monkeypox is a disease caused by the Monkeypox virus. ...
An imported exotic mammal, possibly the Gambian giant rat, is thought to have transmitted the virus to prairie dogs.
Infections may be particularly common among squirrels in Africa; many wild Funisciurus anerythrus and Heliosciurus rufobrachium squirrels have antibodies to monkeypox.
Animals should be necropsied only by individuals who have a current smallpox vaccination, and the biological safety guidelines recommended by the CDC should be followed.