The Yellow-bellied Glider is a large, active, sociable and vocal glider. Adults weigh 450 – 700 grams, have a head and body length of about 30 cm and a large bushy tail that is about 45 cm long. It has grey to brown fur above with a cream to yellow belly, which is paler in young animals. The dark stripe down the back is characteristic of the group. It has a large gliding membrane that extends from the wrist to the ankle. It has a loud, distinctive call, beginning with a high-pitched shriek and subsiding into a throaty rattle.
Distribution
The Yellow-bellied Glider is found along the eastern coast to the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range, from southern Queensland to Victoria.
Habitat and ecology
- Occur in tall mature eucalypt forest generally in areas with high rainfall and nutrient rich soils.
- Forest type preferences vary with latitude and elevation; mixed coastal forests to dry escarpment forests in the north; moist coastal gullies and creek flats to tall montane forests in the south.
- Feed primarily on plant and insect exudates, including nectar, sap, honeydew and manna with pollen and insects providing protein.
- Extract sap by incising (or biting into) the trunks and branches of favoured food trees, often leaving a distinctive ‘V’-shaped scar.
- Live in small family groups of two – six individuals and are nocturnal.
- Den, often in family groups, in hollows of large trees.
- Very mobile and occupy large home ranges between 20 to 85 ha to encompass dispersed and seasonally variable food resources.