---
title: "Japanese Giant Flying Squirrel"
description: "Petaurista leucogenys — Mammals. The Japanese giant flying squirrel (ムササビ, musasabi; Petaurista leucogenys) is a species of flying squirrel, one of the giant flying squirrels in the genus Petaurista."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/animal/japanese-giant-flying-squirrel
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Japanese Giant Flying Squirrel

> Petaurista leucogenys — Mammals. The Japanese giant flying squirrel (ムササビ, musasabi; Petaurista leucogenys) is a species of flying squirrel, one of the giant flying squirrels in the genus Petaurista.

- Scientific name: *Petaurista leucogenys*
- Category: `mammals` (Mammals)
- Habitats: `forest` (Forest)
- iNaturalist observations: 148
- Wikidata: [Q1765345](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q1765345)
- iNaturalist taxon: [45987](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/45987)

## Names

- en: Japanese Giant Flying Squirrel
- de: Japanisches Riesengleithörnchen
- es: Ardilla Voladora Gigante Japonesa
- nl: Witkelige vliegende eekhoorn

## Countries with the most observations

JP (99)

## Summary

The Japanese giant flying squirrel (ムササビ, musasabi; Petaurista leucogenys) is a species of flying squirrel, one of the giant flying squirrels in the genus Petaurista.

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_giant_flying_squirrel

## Photo

![Japanese Giant Flying Squirrel](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/japanese-giant-flying-squirrel/medium.jpg)

Photo: renshuchu · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/227731470

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/japanese-giant-flying-squirrel?lang=en` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).