Creature Feature Encyclopedia: Mammalia

Yellow Bellied Glider Petaurus australis

There are six species of gliding possums which inhabit eucalyptus forests of New Guinea and Australia. These soaring marsupials make their homes in the cavities of enormous elderly eucalypti. It takes 120 years for eucalyptus trees to develop hollow cavities in which the gliders can nest. Yellow-Bellied Gliders can cover over 100 yards in one swoop, with the help of furry skin that stretches between their fore and hind legs. They pair for life, marking each other with scent glands on their foreheads, chests, and rears. Although adults weigh only a few ounces, each family requires around 100 acres of forage space, and will not tolerate intruders from other groups. Yet the Yellow-Bellied Glider is very friendly with other members of its family.

~A Fly in the Sky © 1996