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Lifespan, longevity, and ageing

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Observations: Not much is known about the longevity of these animals. In the wild they have been estimated to live up to 15 years (Ronald Nowak 1999).
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Untitled

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Greater gliders were previously classified as Schoinobates volans until 1982, when the generic name was changed to Petauroides (Nowak,1999).

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Nagel, J. 2003. "Petauroides volans" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Petauroides_volans.html
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Juliet Nagel, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
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Behavior

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Perception Channels: tactile ; chemical

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Nagel, J. 2003. "Petauroides volans" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Petauroides_volans.html
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Juliet Nagel, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
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Conservation Status

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Although widespread and abundant in some areas, greater gliders are very sensitive to clear-cuts and fragmentation of their old-growth habitat. Their conservation is entirely dependent upon the responsible management of the old growth forests in which they live (Kavanaugh and Bamkin, 1995; Strahan, 1995). Tyndale-Biscoe and Smith (1969) showed that over 90% of gliders displaced by a clear-cut die rather than establish a new territory in suitable habitat nearby. Greater gliders may have difficulty migrating through unfavorable habitat for several reasons. They are specialist feeders, and only eat the leaves of some eucalyptus trees. They only carry limited quantities of body fat, and are likely to undergo rapid changes in body condition under adverse conditions, such as with dispersal. They are also very clumsy on the ground, and so have difficulty in crossing open tree-less areas (Lindenmayer et al., 1999).

CITES: no special status

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: least concern

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Nagel, J. 2003. "Petauroides volans" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Petauroides_volans.html
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Benefits

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Since greater gliders require large patches of old growth habitat (Possingham et al., 1994), their needs can conflict with those of humans who wish to cut the trees for timber.

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Nagel, J. 2003. "Petauroides volans" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Petauroides_volans.html
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Benefits

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Although the fur is long and thick, it is rather loose and soft which makes it difficult to work with. Luckily for greater gliders, fur traders rarely wanted their skins (Strahan,1995).

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Nagel, J. 2003. "Petauroides volans" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Petauroides_volans.html
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Juliet Nagel, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
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Associations

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The role of these gliders in the ecosystem has not been evaluated. However, they do eat eucalyptus leaves, maing the energy stored in those leaves available to their predators.

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Nagel, J. 2003. "Petauroides volans" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Petauroides_volans.html
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Juliet Nagel, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
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Trophic Strategy

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Greater gliders are folivores, feeding almost entirely on eucalyptus leaves that they break down with bacterial fermentation in an enlarged cecum (Berra, 1998; Lindenmayer et al., 1999; Possingham et al., 1994). This specialized diet means they are very difficult to keep in zoos (Grzimek, 1990). Greater gliders rarely need to drink (Strahan, 1995).

Plant Foods: leaves

Primary Diet: herbivore (Folivore )

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Nagel, J. 2003. "Petauroides volans" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Petauroides_volans.html
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Juliet Nagel, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
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Distribution

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Greater gliders are found along the eastern coast of the Australian mainland, from eastern Queensland to southern Victoria (Nowak, 1999; Troughton, 1966).

Biogeographic Regions: australian (Native )

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Nagel, J. 2003. "Petauroides volans" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Petauroides_volans.html
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Juliet Nagel, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
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Habitat

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Greater gliders are generally restricted to fairly expansive tall eucalyptus forests, and are never found in the rainforest (Grzimek, 1990). Patches of old growth must be at least 20 ha to sustain a population (Possingham, et al. 1994). Greater gliders are associated with high basal areas of over-story, and they need large patch sizes of old-growth forest. They are most often found in sites containing many trees with hollows. A single glider may use 4-18 den sites (Incoll et al., 2001; Lindenmayer et al., 1993).

Habitat Regions: temperate

Terrestrial Biomes: forest

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Nagel, J. 2003. "Petauroides volans" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Petauroides_volans.html
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Juliet Nagel, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
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Life Expectancy

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Longevity may be up to 15 years in the wild (Nowak, 1999).

Range lifespan
Status: wild:
15 (high) years.

Average lifespan
Status: captivity:
15.0 years.

Average lifespan
Status: wild:
6.0 years.

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Nagel, J. 2003. "Petauroides volans" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Petauroides_volans.html
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Juliet Nagel, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
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Morphology

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Greater gliders are the largest of the gliding possums. Females have a well-developed pouch and two mammae. P. volans are about the size of a domestic cat, weighing 1-1.5 kg as adults. The head and body length is 300-480 mm and the tail is 450-550 mm long (Nowak, 1999). These marsupials have a short snout and large round ears covered by thick fur (Strahan, 1995). The patagium, which is also covered with fur, extends from the knee to the elbow, (unlike the Petauridae, in which it extends from the ankle to the wrist), giving the glider a triangular shape when in the air (Berra, 1998). The long, furred tail, which is not prehensile, is used as a rudder (Grzimek, 1972). Color varies more than that of any other marsupial. The very long, dense fur is typically brownish-black, but can range from pure black with a creamy underside, to dusky browns and grays, cinnamon, red, yellow, and completely white (Grzimek, 1972; Troughton,1966).

Range mass: 1 to 1.5 kg.

Range length: 300 to 480 mm.

Other Physical Features: endothermic ; bilateral symmetry

Average basal metabolic rate: 3.191 W.

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Nagel, J. 2003. "Petauroides volans" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Petauroides_volans.html
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Juliet Nagel, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
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Associations

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Owls may represent the largest threat to gliders. Powerful owls and sooty owls both prey upon them. Dingos and introduced foxes also take P. volans. Because they are gliders, it is likely that they can escape predators by "flying" away.

Known Predators:

  • powerful owls (Ninox strenua)
  • sooty owls (Tyto tenebricosa)
  • dingos (Canis lupus dingo)
  • red foxes (Vulpes vulpes)
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Nagel, J. 2003. "Petauroides volans" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Petauroides_volans.html
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Juliet Nagel, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
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Reproduction

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Males and females will normally share a den from the onset of breeding until the young emerge from the pouch (Strahan, 1995). Some males are monogamous while others are bigamous, although there is no paternal care given to the young (Nowak, 1999).

Mating System: monogamous ; polygynous

Breeding season begins in March, and a single young is born between April and June. The offspring rides in the mother’s pouch until September, suckling on one of the two teats, then rides on the mother’s back until November or December. In January it reaches the age of independence. Sexually maturity is reached at two years of age. Until weaning, approximately half of the offspring produced are male. After the weaning period, the proportion of the population that is male drops precipitously to 39% (Hand, 1990; Tyndale-Biscoe and Smith, 1969).

Breeding season: Breeding begins in March, and the young is born between April and June.

Range number of offspring: 1 (high) .

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female): 2 years.

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male): 2 years.

Key Reproductive Features: iteroparous ; seasonal breeding ; gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual ; fertilization (Internal ); viviparous

Average birth mass: 0.273 g.

Average number of offspring: 1.

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male)
Sex: male:
639 days.

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female)
Sex: female:
639 days.

As in all marsupials, the young are born highly altricial in most respects. Development must be completed in the mother's pouch, rather than in the uterus, as it is in placental mammals. The single offspring is nursed in the pouch until September, when the young glider emerges at 150 g to ride on its mother’s back. In November-December, when about 300 g, the young leaves its mother’s back and becomes more independent. In January, at about 600 g, the young is able to live independently. (Tyndale-Biscoe and Smith, 1969).

Parental Investment: altricial ; female parental care

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Nagel, J. 2003. "Petauroides volans" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed April 27, 2013 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Petauroides_volans.html
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Juliet Nagel, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
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Ecology and conservation

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Greater Gliders are a folivorous marsupial found throughout moist Eucalypt forests in Eastern Australia. They can reach densities of up to 1ha-1 and typically have a relatively small home range of 2-3ha (Comport et al 1996). Greater Gliders are hollow dependent fauna and due to their small home range are essentially a species dependent on old growth (hollow rich) forests.

Logging has been demonstrated to impact on Greater Glider (eg Kavanagh et al 1995) with the highest densities occurring within unlogged old growth forests over logged, regrowth forets.

Greater Gliders are a major prey item for the Powerful Owl and Powerful Owls have the potential to significantly decimate Greater Glider populations by up to 90% (Kavanagh 1988).

References
Comport, S, Ward, S and Foley, W (1996) Home ranges, time budgets and food-tree use in a high-density tropical population of greater gliders, Petauroides volans minor (Pseudocheiridae : Marsupialia), Wildlife Research 23, 401-418.

Kavanagh, R (1988) The impact of predation by the powerful owl, Ninox strenua, on a population of the greater glider, Austral Ecology 13, 445-450.

Kavanagh, R, Debus, S, Tweedie, T and Webster, R (1995) Distribution of Nocturnal Forest Birds and Mammals in North-eastern New South Wales: Relationships with Environmental Variables and Management History, Wildlife Research 22, 357-377.
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Southern greater glider

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The southern greater glider (Petauroides volans),[2] also known as the southern and central greater glider,[3] is a species of large gliding marsupial native to the forests of southeastern Australia.[2] It is a vulnerable species per the IUCN Red List classification, but since 5 July 2022 is listed as endangered under the EPBC Act in Australia.[3] The main threats to its survival are climate change and logging.[4]

Taxonomy

This was the first described species of Petauroides, and long thought to be the only species, with Petauroides armillatus and Petauroides minor being thought to comprise a distinct subspecies of it, P. volans minor; together, they were referred to as the greater glider. However, in 2012 and 2015, several field guides written by Colin Groves and/or Stephen Jackson listed the greater glider as being split into three species, confirmed by a 2020 analysis which found significant genetic and morphological differences between the three species.[5][6][7][8][9] The American Society of Mammalogists now considers the two subspecies to be distinct from P. volans.[2]

The Australian Government's Species Profile and Threats Database (SPRAT) refers to the animal as the greater glider (southern and central).[3]

Distribution

Prior to being split, this species was thought to be found throughout eastern Australia, but recent taxonomic revisions and splits indicate it occupies a much smaller range. Although Jackson and Groves listed the species as ranging from Bundaberg (Queensland) south to Victoria, genetic analysis by McGregor et al. has found this species to not exist near the alleged northern edge of its range, with that species actually being P. armillatus. It is now thought to range from Victoria north to New South Wales, but due to insufficient sampling from New South Wales, the exact border between the range of P. volans and P. armillatus remains unknown as of 2020.[5]

Description

Dark morph, near Lerderderg State Park

This is the largest species of Petauroides and one of the world's largest gliding mammals, growing to the size of a house cat.[8] Its body spans 35–46 cm (14–18 in). Its furry tail reaches up to 60 cm (24 in) long,[4] but is not prehensile. The gliding membrane stretches from the forearm to the tibia.[10] Its ears are large and furry and it has a short snout.[10]

The glider weighs 900–1,700 g (32–60 oz). The females are larger than males. Its thick fur, which is white or cream underneath and "varies from dark grey, dusky brown through to light mottled grey and cream" above, makes it look bigger than it is.[10] This species displays the famous polymorphism that greater gliders are well-known for, having a dark morph that is almost black in colour with a white underside, and a light morph that is grey and white with a white underside.[5][9]

Threats and conservation

Of the three greater glider species, this one is thought to be the most threatened and to have suffered the sharpest declines in population. Prior to late 2019, significant logging in the forests of Victoria and New South Wales had already led to the removal of vast swathes of hollow-bearing trees that the species depended on, and caused the species to decline by almost 80% in some areas. This was worsened when a significant proportion of the species' habitat burned in the 2019-20 Australian bushfire season; for example, over half of 96,000 acres (39,000 ha) of forest in Victoria set aside for glider protection are thought to have burned in the fires. Logging may have made these fires worse by allowing brushfires to burn hotter, and changing the composition of the landscape to less palatable food trees.[8][9]

Climate change may also threaten the species in some regions; rising night-time temperatures may cause the cold-adapted gliders to lose their appetite, leading to starvation.[8][9][11]

Conservation actions required to save the species include reconsidering the species' conservation status and banning logging and land clearance for coal mining. Ecotourism to view the species may be a potential source of conservation income as well.[8]

Notably during 2022, in the wake of the bushfires the Australian National University, Greening Australia, and the World Wide Fund for Nature-Australia teamed up to place more than 200 high-tech thermally appropriate nesting boxes at Glenboc, in Victoria's East Gippsland, and inside the Tallaganda National Park near Braidwood, NSW. The boxes utilise insulation, air gaps, and heat-reflective, fire-resistant non-toxic coatings, in order to keep the animals and at the optimal temperature, and best imitate a tree hollow.[12]

Classifications

The southern glider is a vulnerable species per the IUCN Red List classification. On 5 July 2022 the Australian Government declared the animal to be an endangered species under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999,[3][10] as it becomes more threatened by logging and climate change. Logging is regulated by state governments; however, environment minister Tanya Plibersek said that the federal government was helping to fund ten projects whose goal is to help protect the species.[4]

It is listed as vulnerable under the Nature Conservation Act 2014 (ACT); Nature Conservation (Animals) Regulation 2020 (Queensland) and Nature Conservation Act 1992 (which includes both the southern and central and northern greater gliders); and Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 (Vic);[3] and three subpopulations are listed as endangered under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 (NSW).[10]

References

  1. ^ Burbidge, A.A.; Woinarski, J. (2020) [amended version of 2016 assessment]. "Petauroides volans". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020: e.T40579A166500472. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-1.RLTS.T40579A166500472.en. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  2. ^ a b c "Explore the Database". www.mammaldiversity.org. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Petauroides volans - Greater Glider (southern and central)". Species Profile and Threats Database. Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, Australian Government. 7 July 2022. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  4. ^ a b c Proust, Keira (6 July 2022). "Greater glider listed as endangered, as climate change and logging threatens species". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  5. ^ a b c McGregor, Denise C.; Padovan, Amanda; Georges, Arthur; Krockenberger, Andrew; Yoon, Hwan-Jin & Youngentob, Kara N. (6 November 2020). "Genetic evidence supports three previously described species of greater glider, Petauroides volans, P. minor, and P. armillatus". Scientific Reports. 10 (1): 19284. doi:10.1038/s41598-020-76364-z. PMC 7648813. PMID 33159131.
  6. ^ Jackson, Stephen & Schouten, Peter (2012). Gliding Mammals of the World. CSIRO Publishing. doi:10.1071/9780643104051. ISBN 978-0-643-10406-8.
  7. ^ Jackson, Stephen & Groves, Colin (2015). Taxonomy of Australian Mammals. CSIRO Publishing. doi:10.1071/9781486300136. ISBN 978-1-4863-0014-3.
  8. ^ a b c d e Reid, Sarah. "Australia's charismatic glider marsupial". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
  9. ^ a b c d "Two new greater glider species discovered: 'Australia's biodiversity just got a lot richer'". the Guardian. 6 November 2020. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
  10. ^ a b c d e Conservation Advice for Petauroides volans (greater glider (southern and central)) (PDF) (Report). Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. July 2022.
  11. ^ "Greater gliders: fears of 'catastrophic' consequences from logging in Victoria". The Guardian. 6 September 2017. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  12. ^ Endangered greater gliders adapt quickly to nest boxes after Black Summer, Alasdair McDonald, ABC News Online, 2023-01-13
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Southern greater glider: Brief Summary

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The southern greater glider (Petauroides volans), also known as the southern and central greater glider, is a species of large gliding marsupial native to the forests of southeastern Australia. It is a vulnerable species per the IUCN Red List classification, but since 5 July 2022 is listed as endangered under the EPBC Act in Australia. The main threats to its survival are climate change and logging.

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