There are many different types of gliding possum, sometimes referred to as volplane possum, flying phalangers, or simply as gliders, endemic to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; , fossilized , also known as Papua or historically ) is the List of islands by area, world's second-largest island, with an area of . Located in Melanesia in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is ...

. Taxonomically, gliding possums occupy three genera. ''Acrobates'' –

monotypic genus In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispe ...

Feathertail glider The feathertail glider (''Acrobates pygmaeus''), also known as the pygmy gliding possum, pygmy glider, pygmy phalanger, flying phalanger and flying mouse, is a species of marsupial native to eastern Australia. It is the world's smallest gliding ...

or pygmy gliding possum, ''Acrobates pygmaeus'' ''Petauroides'' – the

greater glider The greater gliders are three species of large gliding marsupials in the genus ''Petauroides'', all of which are found in eastern Australia. Until 2020 they were considered to be one species, '' Petauroides volans''. In 2020 morphological and gen ...

s *

Central greater glider The central greater glider (''Petauroides armillatus'') is a species of gliding marsupial native to the central coast of eastern Australia. Taxonomy It was initially described as a subspecies of '' Petauroides volans'', which alongside '' Pet ...

, ''Petauroides armillatus'' *

Northern greater glider The northern greater glider (''Petauroides minor'') is a species of gliding marsupial endemic to the forests of north-central Queensland, Australia. Taxonomy It was initially described as a subspecies of '' Petauroides volans'', which alongsi ...

, ''Petauroides minor'' *

Southern greater glider 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 Li ...

, ''Petauroides volans'' ''

Petaurus The genus ''Petaurus'' () contains flying phalangers or wrist-winged gliders, a group of arboreal possums native to Australia, New Guinea, and surrounding islands. There are eight species: the sugar glider, savanna glider, Krefft's glider, squirr ...

'' *

Northern glider The northern glider (''Petaurus abidi'') is a species of marsupial in the family Petauridae. It is endemic to Papua New Guinea, becoming known to science in 1981 after being discovered in the Torricelli Mountains. This species has been found ...

, ''Petaurus abidi'' *

Savanna glider The savanna glider (''Petaurus ariel'') is a species of arboreal gliding possum in the genus '' Petaurus''. Taxonomy It was long considered a subspecies of the sugar glider (''P. breviceps''), but a 2020 study split ''P. breviceps'' into 3 di ...

, ''Petaurus ariel'' *

Yellow-bellied glider The yellow-bellied glider (''Petaurus australis''), also known as the fluffy glider, is an arboreal and nocturnal gliding possum that lives in native eucalypt forests in eastern Australia, from northern Queensland south to Victoria. Habitat Th ...

, ''Petaurus australis'' *

Biak glider The Biak glider (''Petaurus biacensis'') is a species of marsupial in the family Petauridae. It is endemic to the Schouten Islands in the western region of Papua Province, Indonesia. It was formerly considered to be a subspecies In Taxon ...

, ''Petaurus biacensis'' *

Sugar glider The sugar glider (''Petaurus breviceps'') is a small, omnivorous, arboreal, and nocturnal gliding possum. The common name refers to its predilection for sugary foods such as sap and nectar and its ability to glide through the air, much lik ...

, ''Petaurus breviceps'' *

Mahogany glider The mahogany glider (''Petaurus gracilis'') is an endangered gliding possumSquirrel glider The squirrel glider (''Petaurus norfolcensis'') is a nocturnal gliding possum. The squirrel glider is one of the wrist-winged gliders of the genus '' Petaurus''. Habitat This species' home range extends from Bordertown near the South Austral ...

, ''Petaurus norfolcensis'' *

Krefft's glider Krefft's glider (''Petaurus notatus'') is a species of Arboreal locomotion, arboreal nocturnal gliding possum, a type of small marsupial. It is native to most of eastern mainland Australia and has been introduced to Tasmania. Populations of ''Pet ...

, ''Petaurus notatus'' A characteristic of all species of marsupial gliders is the partially fused ( syndactylous) second and third digits on the hind feet.Gliders of Australia: A Natural History. 2002. David Lindenmayer They achieve

gliding flight Gliding flight is heavier-than-air flight without the use of thrust; the term volplaning also refers to this mode of flight in animals. It is employed by flying and gliding animals, gliding animals and by aircraft such as glider (aircraft), gl ...

by use of membranes called

patagia The patagium (: patagia) is a membranous body part that assists an animal in obtaining lift when gliding or flying. The structure is found in extant and extinct groups of flying and gliding animals including bats, theropod dinosaurs (includin ...

References

{{Animal common name Diprotodonts