The
Squirrel Glider is very similar in appearance to the more common Sugar Glider, and to the untrained
eye it would be hard to distinguish the two.This glider is however
almost double the size of the Sugar Glider, its tail is also
extremely bushy.
Head and body length is
180-230mm, with a bushy tail measuring 220-300 mm, so as the
Sugar Glider the tail is longer than the body.
Other distinguishing differences
is the shape of the face, the Squirrel Glider has a more pointed
face, slightly narrower and longer ears. This would only be
apparent if you were to see the two species together.
This Glider is unfortunately
only found rarely these days due to loss of habitat and cat
attacks. It can be found in dry sclerophyll forest and woodland,
sometimes bordering rainforest, but seems absent from dense
coastal ranges.
Its diet is similar to the
Sugar Glider being gum produced by Acacias, certain eucalypts,
invertebrates, and invertebrate exudates.
It builds its own leaf lined
nest as the Sugar Glider.
Breeding takes place from
August with each female producing 2 young which develop in the
pouch till 70 days old, they are then placed in the communal
nest where they spend a further 30 days before leaving with
mum to forage at night. As most Australian marsupials they are
strictly nocturnal, n
ot
venturing out till it is totally dark. Predators are many, untill
white man arrived these were mainly owls, kookaburras and goannas.
These days domestic and feral cats unfortunately account for
very high numbers of these animals demise.If you do own a cat,
please ensure it is inside at night, and has a collar on with
more than 3 bells.
If you were ever lucky enough
to watch these animals in their natural habitat watching them
glide through the forest would be something to remember. It
sets off with its hind legs leaping from tree to tree, spreading
membranes, which extends on each side of the body from the fifth
finger to the first toe of the foot. It steers and maintains
stability by varying the curvature of the left or right membrane,
volplaning up to 50 meters. When it is about 3 meters from target
tree it brings its hind legs in towards the body and with an
upward swoop lands with four feet on the bark.