flying phalanger (fliingfalan"jer)

A general popular name of the petaurists or flying marsupial animals of the family Phalangistidæ. They have a parachute-like fold of skin along the sides by which they are enabled to take flying leaps through the air. There are several species and genera, differing much in size and general appearance, some being no larger than a mouse. Also called acrobat and flying -squirrel. See cut under Acrobates. flying-robin (fli'ing-robin), п. The flying gurnard. flying-shot (fli'ing-shot), n. 1. A shot fired at an object in motion, as a horseman, or a ship under sail, etc.-2. A marksman who fires at an object in motion. Farrow. flying-squid (fli'ing-skwid), n. A sagitta ted calamary or sea-arrow; a cephalopod or squid of the genus Ommastrephes: so called from having two large lateral fins, which enable it to leap so high out of water that it sometimes falls on the deck of a ship. flying-squirrel (fli'ing-skwur"el), n. A squirrel or squirrel-like animal having a fold of skin like a parachute along each side of the body, by means of which it is enabled to make long flying leaps through the air. Specifically (a) A squirrel proper, a rodent mammal of the family Sciurid a, of the above character. The smaller species, of which several inhabit North America and Europe, be IMG:content-1570.jpg:[graphic] IMG:content-1571.jpg:[graphic] American Flying-squirrel ( Sciuropterus volucella). long to the genus Sciuropterus. Such are S. volucella, the common flying-squirrel of North America, 6 or 7 inches long without the tail, with large black eyes and extremely soft fur, and the similar old-world S. volans. The taguans or larger flying-squirrels are all of the old world, and belong to the genus Pteromys; they are sometimes called flying-marmots and flying- cats. See cut under Pteromys. (b) Same as flying - phalanger.