![]() ![]() Their colonies are typically run by two males who share authority and various responsibilities related to the group dynamic.Thin membranes attached to their wrists and ankles allow these mammals to glide for over 100 feet without touching the ground.Baby sugar gliders are called “joeys” like their much larger kangaroo cousins. ![]() ![]() ![]() Despite restrictions in some countries, they are also a popular choice as exotic household pets. Despite their name and a hardy appetite for sweet foods, sugar gliders are actually omnivorous animals and consume a diverse diet that typically fluctuates throughout the year. However, their classification as marsupials means they are actually more similar to kangaroos, koalas, and possums. They have comparable size and appearance to North American squirrel species. Sugar gliders are tiny nocturnal animals that are native to forested and wooded regions in Australia and New Guinea. 1983.“A small, gliding possum with a big sweet tooth.” The Australian Museum: Complete Book of Australian Mammals. Their gliding locomotion is an efficient way of exploiting hard to reach patchy food sources other animals may have difficulty finding.ĭue to its relatively small size, especially in its first 12 months of life, sugar gliders are a prey animal for owls, kookaburras, goannas, and cats. Retention of interconnected systems of suitable forest and woodland habitat are essential for its conservation in these agricultural areas. Sugar glider populations are fairly stable and often thrive in the strips and patches of forest left on cleared agricultural land, unlike some of their opossum cousins. Females have a pouch on their belly in which they raise their young for 10 weeks after birth.Males have a bald spot on their head, which is actually a scent gland.Each finger has a sharp toe that can hook like Velcro to most non-slick surfaces. Sugar gliders have opposable thumbs and four fingers on both hands and feet.If this warning doesn't work, they strike with full force. When angry, gliders lean back and make a chattering noise that resembles a small, yapping dog.Sugar gliders get their name because of the specialized flap connecting the front leg to the hind leg, giving them the ability to glide.Young gliders usually leave around 10 months to start their own colonies.Sugar gliders live in large colonies of 20 to 40 individuals with two alpha males fathering the majority of offspring.These marsupials are able to glide up to 45 meters (148.5 ft.) and have been observed to leap at and catch moths in flight.Size The head and body measure 125 to 150 cm (5 to 6 in.) Weight 114 to 171 grams (4 to 6 oz.) Diet Primarily feeds on fruits and vegetables occasionally eats insects, mice, nuts, and other small mammals Incubation Gestation lasts approximately 16 days gestation, then they crawl into the pouch for another 10 weeks Nursing Duration Weaned at 16 weeks Sexual Maturity About 9 to 10 months Life Span 4 to 6 years in wild Range Australia, Tasmania, New Guinea, and neighboring islands of Indonesia Habitat Arboreal species, inhabits forests Population Global: Unknown Status IUCN: Not listed A black stripe runs the full length of the body in line with the spine and crown of the head. Scientific Classification Common Name sugar glider, lesser gliding opossum, sugar squirrel Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Mammalia Order Diprotodontia Family Petauridae Genus Species Petaurus (springboard used by acrobats) breviceps (short)įast Facts Description The sugar glider has soft, thick, mink-like, gray fur that covers its body and tail. ![]()
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