It is hard to guess what a African pygmy squirrel weights. But we have the answer:
An adult African pygmy squirrel (Myosciurus pumilio) on average weights 16 grams (0.04 lbs).
The African pygmy squirrel is from the family Sciuridae (genus: Myosciurus). When reaching adult age, they grow up to 6.9 cm (0′ 3″). Usually, African pygmy squirrels have 1 babies per litter.
As a reference: An average human weights in at 62 kg (137 lbs) and reaches an average size of 1.65m (5′ 5″). Humans spend 280 days (40 weeks) in the womb of their mother and reach around 75 years of age.
The African pygmy squirrel (Myosciurus pumilio) is a species of rodent in the family Sciuridae. It is monotypic within the genus Myosciurus. It is found in tropical rainforests in Cameroon, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon. It is not considered threatened, but likely declines locally due to habitat loss. Together with the least pygmy squirrel of Asia, the African pygmy squirrel is the world’s smallest squirrel measuring about 12–14 cm (4.7–5.5 in) in total length and just 15–18 g (0.53–0.63 oz) in weight, which is less than a typical house mouse.
Animals of the same family as a African pygmy squirrel
We found other animals of the Sciuridae family:
- Western gray squirrel with a weight of 704 grams
- Ear-spot squirrel with a weight of 209 grams
- Indian giant flying squirrel bringing 1.68 kilos (3.7 lbs) to the scale
- Belding’s ground squirrel with a weight of 272 grams
- Lunda rope squirrel with a weight of 135 grams
- Hose’s pygmy flying squirrel with a size of 7.8 cm (0′ 4″)
- Ring-tailed ground squirrel with a weight of 500 grams
- Unstriped ground squirrel with a weight of 317 grams
- Red bush squirrel with a weight of 365 grams
- Cooper’s mountain squirrel with a weight of 250 grams
Animals with the same weight as a African pygmy squirrel
As a comparison, here are some other animals that weight as much as the Myosciurus pumilio:
- Mottled-tailed shrew mouse bringing 18 grams to the scale
- House mouse bringing 19 grams to the scale
- Large-eared slit-faced bat bringing 14 grams to the scale
- Orange nectar bat bringing 13 grams to the scale
- Gerbil mouse bringing 17 grams to the scale
- Black-capped fruit bat bringing 17 grams to the scale
- White-collared fruit bat bringing 18 grams to the scale
- Melissa’s yellow-eared bat bringing 16 grams to the scale
- Northern red-backed vole bringing 19 grams to the scale
- Russet free-tailed bat bringing 16 grams to the scale
Animals with the same size as a African pygmy squirrel
Not that size really matters, but it makes things comparable. So here are a couple of animals that are as big as African pygmy squirrel:
- Usambara shrew with a size of 7.9 cm (0′ 4″)
- Chinese shrew mole with a size of 7.2 cm (0′ 3″)
- Asiatic short-tailed shrew with a size of 6.7 cm (0′ 3″)
- Shinto shrew with a size of 6.3 cm (0′ 3″)
- Grasse’s shrew with a size of 6.3 cm (0′ 3″)
- Antillean fruit-eating bat with a size of 8.1 cm (0′ 4″)
- Great Basin pocket mouse with a size of 8.1 cm (0′ 4″)
- Sinaloan pocket mouse with a size of 7.1 cm (0′ 3″)
- Pale shrew tenrec with a size of 7.2 cm (0′ 3″)
- Tien Shan shrew with a size of 6.5 cm (0′ 3″)
Animals with the same litter size as a African pygmy squirrel
Here is a list of animals that have the same number of babies per litter (1) as a African pygmy squirrel: