''Miopetaurista'' is an extinct genus of

flying squirrel Flying squirrels (scientifically known as Pteromyini or Petauristini) are a tribe of 50 species of squirrels in the family Sciuridae. Despite their name, they are not in fact capable of full flight in the same way as birds or bats, but they ar ...

closely related to flying squirrels of today. Fossils of this species have been found from the

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

(France, Germany) and

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

(China).

Description

Species from the genus ''Miopetaurista'' were characterized as being frugivores and granivores, which means that, in one hand, they ate primarily or exclusively fruit and, on the other hand, seeds of plants or grains. They were scansorial, meaning that they were capable of, or adapted for climbing, in this case, trees.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q6871560 Miocene rodents Flying squirrels Miocene mammals of Europe Miocene mammals of Asia Prehistoric rodent genera Fossil taxa described in 1962