A feathertail glider is a small marsupial that is about 3 inches long and weighs 12 grams. It travels from tree to tree gliding through the air - it does this by extending the flaps of skin that are attached from the elbows to the ankle and gliding. It has a feather-like tail fringed with stiff hairs that acts as a stabilizer, rudder, and brake during gliding. A feathertail glider is an arboreal animal and it feeds on insects, nectar, pollen, and sap. It has a specially adapted tongue with a brush of fine hairs to aid in pollen and nectar collection. Interestingly, this species cannot initially digest pollen and must actually eat it twice. It first collects pollen from flowers and ingests it. The pollen is fermented in the gut and then expelled as droppings, which are re-eaten.

This species is endemic to Australia, where it ranges throughout much of the east and southeast of the country; also on Fraser Island. Sea level to 1,200 m.

Restricted to mainland Austrailia, but has a wide distribution through most of the open and closed forests of eastern and south-eastern Austraila from Cape York to the southeastern corner of South Austrailia. Also found in river redgum forests associated with inland rivers, particularly the Murray River (Ward, 1990)

Biogeographic Regions: australian (Native )

Range in weight of males is similar to that of females, but in most cases the males actually weighed more. Head and body length ranges from 65-80mm, and tail length ranges from 70-80mm. Most notable characteristic of A. pygmaeus is the feather-like tail, which no other mammal has. It has molars suggestive of an insectivore, but also a brush-tipped tongue typical of a nectar-feeder. Its large forwardly directed eyes are for nocturnal binocular vision, and it has large serrated pads on each toe, which aid in adhesion to smooth surfaces. A. pygmaeus has a somewhat prehensile tail that provides grip on twigs and small branches.

Average mass: 13 g.

Average basal metabolic rate: 0.084 W.

Habitat and Ecology

Systems

• Terrestrial

Acrobates pygmaeus is found in a wide range of habitats. It has been observed foraging on the ground, in large trees and bushes and in tall grasses. Feathertailed Gliders have been observed foraging at hieghts from ground level to 40 meters above the ground. Height of foraging depends on species of tree and abundance of food, but it is independent of season (Goldingay and Kavanagh, 1995).

Terrestrial Biomes: savanna or grassland ; forest

Most of the feeding behavior of this species takes place in eucalypts. They search under loose bark and glean foliage. The searching of loose bark suggests that the animal feeds on honeydew and arthropods, while the foliage gleaning is suggestive of feeding on manna, honeydew, lerps and arthropods. Nectar feeding has been seen (Goldingay and Kavanagh, 1995) but is said to only rarely occur.

Average lifespan

Status: captivity: 7.2 years.

Average lifespan

Status: wild: 4.0 years.

Maximum longevity: 8.8 years (captivity) Observations: In zoos, these animals have been known to live up to 8.8 years (Richard Weigl 2005).

In southeastern Australia the species breeds from July to January and females usually produce two litters within this time. The second litter is conceived at a post-partum oestrus and undergoes a period of embryonic diapause. Males exhibit enlarged testes and epididymides at the start of the breeding season, but show a decline during the season. There may be four or more pouch young but the number seldom exceeds the number of teats, which is four. Pouch life lasts about 9 weeks, which is long for a marsupial of this size, but the stage of development is similar to other marsupials at the time of pouch exit. On average, about one young is lost from each litter during lactation. Reduction in litter sizes may be a result of the female matching cost of lactation with levels of resources available. At the time of weaning, individuals are large and may continue to associate with their mothers, however, 90% of both sexes disappear from the population, either through dispersal or mortality, before they reach maturity (Ward, 1990).

Average birth mass: 0.0178 g.

Average number of offspring: 3.

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male)

Sex: male: 365 days.

Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female)

Sex: female: 240 days.

Acrobates pygmaeus is said to be common in its geographic range and individual habitats.

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: least concern

Population

Population Trend

Major Threats

Conservation Actions