Sugar Glider

Sugar Glider Stats

Scientific Name:  Petaurus breviceps
Size:  Adult males weigh from 100 to 160 grams, adult females 80 to 130 grams but may vary among subspecies. Body length ranges from 160 to 210 mm, with tail length 165 to 210 mm
Origin:  Papua-New Guinea, Tasmania, Indonesia and the east coast of Australia
Life Expectancy:  On average, sugar gliders live approximately 10 to 15 years in captivity but only five to seven years in the wild
Temperament:  Sugar gliders are intelligent, playful and very social animals among their own kind. Because they are nocturnal, sugar gliders tend to sleep in their nests during the day and become active at dusk and throughout the evening. This is when they forage and interact with other sugar gliders.
Varieties:  There are 11 species of possums in the Petauridae family. They are split into three genera: six species of Petaurus, which include the sugar glider; one species of Gymnobelideus, which is called the Leadbeater's possum; and four species of Dactylopsila, or striped possums. There are seven subspecies of Petaurus breviceps. P.b. longicaudatus, which occurs in Queensland, Australia and P.b. ariel in the Northern Territory. P.b. flavidus, P.b. tafa, P..b. papuanus and P. b. biacensis reside in the various regions of New Guinea and Indonesian Providences. P. breviceps breviceps extends from Tasmania to just south of the Tropic of Capricorn. 

Sugar Glider Species Profile

Sugar Gliders are a type of small arboreal, nocturnal marsupial possum native to Papua-New Guinea, Tasmania, Indonesia and the east coast of Australia. They inhabit the treetops and open areas in tropical or coastal forests and drier, inland tropical forests. Sugar Gliders may live in colonies of up to 10 individuals per hectare (10,000 square meters). They posses a gliding membrane called the patagium, which stretches between the front and hind legs. Reported gliding distances are as long as 100 meters.