VulnerableKoala
Phascolarctos cinereus
One of the 2 gliders on WAnimals
Mammals · Diprotodontia · Pseudocheiridae
Petauroides volans
At very high risk of extinction in the wild in the near future.
The greater glider is the largest gliding marsupial in the world and one of the most specialised: it eats almost exclusively eucalypt leaves, and those of only a few particular species. Its gliding membrane runs from elbow to ankle, not from the wrist as in the petaurid gliders, and lets it cover up to a hundred metres between trees. It depends on mature forest with hollows to nest in. The great fires of 2019 and 2020 destroyed a large part of its habitat and accelerated its decline.
Weight
900 g – 1.7 kg
Size
35 cm – 45 cm
Life expectancy
15 years
Diet
Herbivore
Feeds mainly on plants.
Activity
Nocturnal
Active mainly at night.
Social structure
Solitary
Lives and hunts alone, joining others only to breed.
Sighting difficulty
Hard
Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petauroides_volans
The pins mark the parks where its presence is documented.
Parks and dive sites where this species has been documented — showing 10 of 17.
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Greater Glider — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
The greater glider is classified as endangered. Organisations such as the IUCN, WWF and the Wildlife Conservation Society work specifically on its conservation and that of its habitat; looking into their programmes is a good starting point if you want to get involved.
It's documented in 10 protected areas — one reason why protecting these places matters for its conservation.
Based on what we already know about greater glider.
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