# Petaurus

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Genus of marsupials

Petaurus Sugar glider Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Infraclass: Marsupialia Order: Diprotodontia Family: Petauridae Genus: Petaurus Shaw, 1791 Type species Petaurus australis Shaw, 1791 Species Petaurus abidi Petaurus ariel Petaurus australis Petaurus biacensis Petaurus breviceps Petaurus gracilis Petaurus norfolcensis Petaurus notatus Distribution rangemap of Petauridae species. Petaurus in blue (mixed with orange where Dactylopsila also present).

The genus ***Petaurus*** ([/pə.tɔːˈrəs/](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/English)) contains **flying phalangers** or **wrist-winged gliders**, a group of [arboreal](/source/Arboreal) [possums](/source/Phalangeriformes) native to [Australia](/source/Australia), [New Guinea](/source/New_Guinea), and surrounding islands. There are eight species: the [sugar glider](/source/Sugar_glider), [savanna glider](/source/Savanna_glider), [Krefft's glider](/source/Krefft's_glider), [squirrel glider](/source/Squirrel_glider), [mahogany glider](/source/Mahogany_glider), [northern glider](/source/Northern_glider), [yellow-bellied glider](/source/Yellow-bellied_glider) and [Biak glider](/source/Biak_glider).[1]

Flying phalangers are typically [nocturnal](/source/Nocturnal), most being small (sometimes around 400 mm (16 in), counting the tail), and have folds of loose skin ([patagia](/source/Patagia)) running from the wrists to the ankles. They use the patagia to glide from tree to tree by jumping and holding out their limbs spread-eagle. They are able to glide for distances over 140 metres (460 ft). Beside the distinctive [skin folds](/source/Skin_fold), flying phalangers also have large, forward-facing eyes, short (though pointed) faces, and long flat tails which are used as rudders while gliding.

All are [omnivores](/source/Omnivore), and eat tree sap, [gum](/source/Natural_gum), [nectar](/source/Nectar), [pollen](/source/Pollen), and insects, along with [manna](/source/Manna_Gum) and [honeydew](/source/Honeydew_(secretion)). Most flying phalangers appear to be solitary, though the yellow-bellied glider and sugar glider are both known to live in groups.

## Conservation status

While [Biak](/source/Biak_glider) and [Krefft's gliders](/source/Krefft's_glider) are relatively common, most of the other species are rare. The [mahogany glider](/source/Mahogany_glider) is the most threatened species in Australia and is listed as [endangered](/source/Endangered). They are so uncommon that they were not seen for more than a hundred years after their original discovery in 1883. Nearly a month after they were rediscovered in 1989, their habitat was cleared for [plantations](/source/Plantation), and another population was not found until 1991. The reasons for the endangered status of the mahogany glider include habitat degradation or loss, limited distribution, and the lack of habitat protection.[2] Along with mahogany gliders, the [squirrel gliders](/source/Squirrel_glider) (*Petaurus norfolcensis*) are also somewhat threatened as well.[3] A 2020 study found that the true sugar glider (*P. breviceps*) also has a restricted range in Australia, making it far more threatened than initially thought.[4]

## Species

- Genus *Petaurus* - [Northern glider](/source/Northern_glider), *Petaurus abidi* - [Savanna glider](/source/Savanna_glider), *Petaurus ariel* - [Yellow-bellied glider](/source/Yellow-bellied_glider), *Petaurus australis* - [Biak glider](/source/Biak_glider), *Petaurus biacensis* - [Sugar glider](/source/Sugar_glider), *Petaurus breviceps* - [Mahogany glider](/source/Mahogany_glider), *Petaurus gracilis* - [Squirrel glider](/source/Squirrel_glider), *Petaurus norfolcensis* - [Krefft's glider](/source/Krefft's_glider), *Petaurus notatus*

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["*Petaurus*"](https://www.mammaldiversity.org/tree.html#genus=Petaurus). *ASM Mammal Diversity Database*. [American Society of Mammalogists](/source/American_Society_of_Mammalogists). Retrieved 2021-06-19.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** Jackson, Stephen M. (July 2011). ["*Petaurus gracilis* (Diprotodontia: Petauridae)"](https://bioone.org/journals/Mammalian-Species/volume-43/issue-1/882.1/Petaurus-gracilis-Diprotodontia-Petauridae/10.1644/882.1.full). *Mammalian Species*. **43** (1): 141–148. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1644/882.1](https://doi.org/10.1644%2F882.1). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0076-3519](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0076-3519). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [35166232](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:35166232).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Crane, M. J.; Lindenmayer, D. B.; Cunningham, R. B. (February 2013). ["Use and characteristics of nocturnal habitats of the squirrel glider (*Petaurus norfocensis*) in Australian temperate woodlands"](https://bioone.org/journals/Australian-Journal-of-Zoology/volume-60/issue-5/ZO12080/Use-and-characteristics-of-nocturnal-habitats-of-the-squirrel-glider/10.1071/ZO12080.full). *Australian Journal of Zoology*. **60** (5): 320–329. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1071/ZO12080](https://doi.org/10.1071%2FZO12080). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0004-959X](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0004-959X). [S2CID](/source/S2CID_(identifier)) [83561055](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:83561055).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Cremona, Teigan; Baker, Andrew M; Cooper, Steven J B; Montague-Drake, Rebecca; Stobo-Wilson, Alyson M; Carthew, Susan M (2020-07-13). ["Integrative taxonomic investigation of Petaurus breviceps (Marsupialia: Petauridae) reveals three distinct species"](https://dx.doi.org/10.1093/zoolinnean/zlaa060). *Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society*. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.1093/zoolinnean/zlaa060](https://doi.org/10.1093%2Fzoolinnean%2Fzlaa060). [ISSN](/source/ISSN_(identifier)) [0024-4082](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0024-4082).

- [Groves, C. P.](/source/Colin_Groves) (2005). [Wilson, D. E.](/source/Don_E._Wilson); Reeder, D. M. (eds.). [*Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference*](http://www.departments.bucknell.edu/biology/resources/msw3/browse.asp) (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 54–55. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [0-801-88221-4](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-801-88221-4). [OCLC](/source/OCLC_(identifier)) [62265494](https://search.worldcat.org/oclc/62265494).

## External links

- [Sugar Glider](http://www.dpiw.tas.gov.au/inter.nsf/WebPages/BHAN-53J8XS?open) - Tasmanian Government

- [Sugar Glider](https://web.archive.org/web/20141103185822/http://www.sugarglidercages.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Sugar_Glider.pdf)- Caffee Zoo

- [Yellow-Bellied Glider](http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/accounts/petaurus/p._australis) - University of Michigan Museum of Zoology

- [Mahogany Glider](http://www.animalinfo.org/species/petagrac.htm) - Animal Info

- [Australia's Charismatic Glider Marsupials](https://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20210217-australias-charismatic-glider-marsupial). BBC Travel

- [Marsupials and Monotremes of the Museum of Wiesbaden](https://web.archive.org/web/20061013132004/http://www.nws-wiesbaden.de/coll043.html) - (**Images**)

- [The Marsupial Society of Australia](https://web.archive.org/web/20120731040247/http://www.marsupialsociety.org/)

- [about Marsupials](https://web.archive.org/web/20060204013329/http://www.chaffeezoo.org/animals/marsupialsTheirWay.html)

v t e Extant Diprotodontia species Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Mammalia Infraclass Marsupialia Suborder Vombatiformes Phascolarctidae Phascolarctos Koala (P. cinereus) Vombatidae (wombats) Vombatus Common wombat (V. ursinus) Lasiorhinus Southern hairy-nosed wombat (L. latifrons) Northern hairy-nosed wombat (L. krefftii) Suborder Phalangeriformes (possums) Phalangeridae (including cuscuses) Ailurops (bear cuscuses) Talaud bear cuscus (A. melanotis) Sulawesi bear cuscus (A. ursinus) Phalanger Gebe cuscus (P. alexandrae) Mountain cuscus (P. carmelitae) Ground cuscus (P. gymnotis) Eastern common cuscus (P. intercastellanus) Woodlark cuscus (P. lullulae) Blue-eyed cuscus (P. matabiru) Telefomin cuscus (P. matanim) Southern common cuscus (P. mimicus) Northern common cuscus (P. orientalis) Ornate cuscus (P. ornatus) Rothschild's cuscus (P. rothschildi) Silky cuscus (P. sericeus) Stein's cuscus (P. vestitus) Spilocuscus Admiralty Island cuscus (S. kraemeri) Common spotted cuscus (S. maculatus) Waigeou cuscus (S. papuensis) Black-spotted cuscus (S. rufoniger) Blue-eyed spotted cuscus (S. wilsoni) Strigocuscus Sulawesi dwarf cuscus (S. celebensis) Banggai cuscus (S. pelegensis) Trichosurus (brushtail possums) Northern brushtail possum (T. arnhemensis) Short-eared possum (T. caninus) Mountain brushtail possum (T. cunninghami) Coppery brushtail possum (T. johnstonii) Common brushtail possum (T. vulpecula) Wyulda Scaly-tailed possum (W. squamicaudata) Burramyidae (pygmy possums) Burramys Mountain pygmy possum (B. parvus) Cercartetus Long-tailed pygmy possum (C. caudatus) Western pygmy possum (C. concinnus) Tasmanian pygmy possum (C. lepidus) Eastern pygmy possum (C. nanus) Tarsipedidae Tarsipes Honey possum (T. rostratus) Petauridae Dactylopsila Great-tailed triok (D. megalura) Long-fingered triok (D. palpator) Tate's triok (D. tatei) Striped possum (D. trivirgata) Gymnobelideus Leadbeater's possum (G. leadbeateri) Petaurus Northern glider (P. abidi) Yellow-bellied glider (P. australis) Biak glider (P. biacensis) Sugar glider (P. breviceps) Mahogany glider (P. gracilis) Squirrel glider (P. norfolcensis) Pseudocheiridae Hemibelideus Lemur-like ringtail possum (H. lemuroides) Petauroides (greater gliders) Central greater glider (P. armillatus) Northern greater glider (P. minor) Southern greater glider (P. volans) Petropseudes Rock-haunting ringtail possum (P. dahli) Pseudocheirus Common ringtail possum (P. peregrinus) Pseudochirulus Lowland ringtail possum (P. canescens) Weyland ringtail possum (P. caroli) Cinereus ringtail possum (P. cinereus) Painted ringtail possum (P. forbesi) Herbert River ringtail possum (P. herbertensis) Masked ringtail possum (P. larvatus) Pygmy ringtail possum (P. mayeri) Vogelkop ringtail possum (P. schlegeli) Pseudochirops D'Albertis's ringtail possum (P. albertisii) Green ringtail possum (P. archeri) Plush-coated ringtail possum (P. corinnae) Reclusive ringtail possum (P. coronatus) Coppery ringtail possum (P. cupreus) Acrobatidae Acrobates Feathertail glider (A. pygmaeus) Distoechurus Feather-tailed possum (D. pennatus) Suborder Macropodiformes Macropodidae (includes wallabies) Lagostrophus Banded hare-wallaby (L. fasciatus) Dendrolagus (tree-kangaroos) Bennett's tree-kangaroo (D. bennettianus) Doria's tree-kangaroo (D. dorianus) Goodfellow's tree-kangaroo (D. goodfellowi) Grizzled tree-kangaroo (D. inustus) Lumholtz's tree-kangaroo (D. lumholtzi) Matschie's tree-kangaroo (D. matschiei) Dingiso (D. mbaiso) Ifola (D. notatus) Golden-mantled tree-kangaroo (D. pulcherrimus) Lowlands tree-kangaroo (D. spadix) Tenkile (D. scottae) Seri's tree-kangaroo (D. stellarum) Ursine tree-kangaroo (D. ursinus) Dorcopsis Black dorcopsis (D. atrata) White-striped dorcopsis (D. hageni) Gray dorcopsis (D. luctuosa) Brown dorcopsis (D. muelleri) Dorcopsulus Macleay's dorcopsis (D. macleayi) Small dorcopsis (D. vanheurni) Lagorchestes (hare-wallabies) Spectacled hare-wallaby (L. conspicillatus) Rufous hare-wallaby (L. hirsutus) Macropus Western grey kangaroo (M. fuliginosus) Eastern grey kangaroo (M. giganteus) Notamacropus Agile wallaby (N. agilis) Black-striped wallaby (N. dorsalis) Tammar wallaby (N. eugenii) Western brush wallaby (N. irma) Parma wallaby (N. parma) Whiptail wallaby (N. parryi) Red-necked wallaby (N. rufogriseus) Onychogalea (nail-tail wallabies) Bridled nail-tail wallaby (O. fraenata) Northern nail-tail wallaby (O. unguifera) Osphranter Antilopine kangaroo (O. antilopinus) Black wallaroo (O. bernardus) Common wallaroo (O. robustus) Red kangaroo (O. rufus) Petrogale (rock-wallabies) P. brachyotis species group: Short-eared rock-wallaby (P. brachyotis) Monjon (P. burbidgei) Nabarlek (P. concinna) Eastern short-eared rock-wallaby (P. wilkinsi) P. xanthopus species group: Proserpine rock-wallaby (P. persephone) Rothschild's rock-wallaby (P. rothschildi) Yellow-footed rock-wallaby (P. xanthopus) P. lateralis/penicillata species group: Allied rock-wallaby (P. assimilis) Cape York rock-wallaby (P. coenensis) Godman's rock-wallaby (P. godmani) Herbert's rock-wallaby (P. herberti) Unadorned rock-wallaby (P. inornata) Black-flanked rock-wallaby (P. lateralis) Mareeba rock-wallaby (P. mareeba) Brush-tailed rock-wallaby (P. penicillata) Purple-necked rock-wallaby (P. purpureicollis) Mount Claro rock-wallaby (P. sharmani) Setonix Quokka (S. brachyurus) Thylogale (pademelons) Tasmanian pademelon (T. billardierii) Brown's pademelon (T. browni) Dusky pademelon (T. brunii) Calaby's pademelon (T. calabyi) Mountain pademelon (T. lanatus) Red-legged pademelon (T. stigmatica) Red-necked pademelon (T. thetis) Wallabia Swamp wallaby (W. bicolor) Potoroidae Aepyprymnus Rufous rat-kangaroo (A. rufescens) Bettongia (bettongs) Eastern bettong (B. gaimardi) Boodie (B. lesueur) Woylie (B. ogilbyi) Northern bettong (B. tropica) Potorous (potoroos) Long-footed potoroo (P. longipes) Long-nosed potoroo (P. tridactylus) Gilbert's potoroo (P. gilbertii) Hypsiprymnodontidae Hypsiprymnodon Musky rat-kangaroo (H. moschatus)

Taxon identifiers Petaurus Wikidata: Q1414895 Wikispecies: Petaurus AFD: Petaurus BOLD: 83098 CoL: 6LZ9 EoL: 41535 EPPO: 1PTAUG GBIF: 2440040 iNaturalist: 42719 IRMNG: 1301799 ITIS: 609800 MSW: 11000151 NCBI: 34898 Paleobiology Database: 40123

Authority control databases: National Israel

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Petaurus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petaurus) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petaurus?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.