Ecological Roles of Indian Palm Squirrels (Funambulus spp.) as Floral Visitors Across Five Indian States: First Comprehensive Account

Flower visitation by non-flying mammals remains poorly documented in South Asia. The ecological roles of palm squirrels as floral visitors and potential pollinators in India have received limited systematic attention. This study aimed to document flower visitation by all four Indian palm squirrel species (Funambulus spp.), assess their roles as nectar robbers, flower predators, or occasional floral visitors across diverse plant species. Floral visitation was recorded opportunistically through direct observation, photographic and video documentation across gardens, agricultural landscapes, forest edges and protected areas in five Indian states, encompassing 40 independent observation events between December 2019 and March 2021. Observations were classified into three functional categories: nectar robbers, flower predators, and occasional visitors. A presence-absence bipartite interaction network was constructed to visualise interaction structure across squirrel species. All four palm squirrel species were recorded visiting flowers of 20 plant species, belonging to 11 families, of which 11 represent novel interaction records. Most visits involved nectar access with floral damage, indicating roles as nectar robbers or flower predators, particularly on small, fragile entomophilous flowers. Visits to large, robust flowers were less destructive and occasionally involved contact with reproductive structures, raising the possibility of opportunistic pollen transfer. The bipartite network indicated unequal interaction occurrence among squirrel species, with Funambulus tristriatus recording the maximum number of plant associations, whereas Funambulus sublineatus showed the minimum interactions. These findings highlight the underappreciated role of palm squirrels as frequent floral visitors in Indian plant communities.