Northern flying squirrels endangered

A rare species found in just a few small habitats in Pennsylvania, including one area in Potter County, has been designated as an endangered species by the Pa. Game Commission.

The northern flying squirrel, larger and rarest of Pennsylvania's two flying squirrel species, has been in decline for some time.

Game Commission biologist Greg Turner said, "They have very specific habitat preferences and their existence in Pennsylvania is threatened by a parasite carried by southern flying squirrels and by forest pests that destroy their preferred habitat."

Northerns were once found across Pennsylvania's northern tier. The major reason for their decline is the loss and fragmentation of older-growth coniferous forest in Pennsylvania.

In Pennsylvania, its distribution is limited to less than a half-dozen known sites. All are in northeastern Pennsylvania, with the exception of one in Warren County and one in Potter County.

Complicating the northern's existence is the wooly adelgid, a European insect that strips and frequently kills hemlock trees.