Squirrel gliders use roadside glide poles to cross a road gap
Brendan D. Taylor A B and Ross L. Goldingay AA School of Environmental Science and Management, Southern Cross University, Lismore, NSW 2480, Australia.
B Corresponding author. Email: brendan.taylor@scu.edu.au
Australian Mammalogy 35(1) 119-122 https://doi.org/10.1071/AM12013
Submitted: 29 February 2012 Accepted: 28 May 2012 Published: 26 October 2012
Abstract
Tall wooden poles placed along roadsides may enable road crossing by gliding mammals. We investigated the use of 12-m-high roadside glide poles at one location in Brisbane. Camera traps on roadside poles detected squirrel gliders (Petaurus norfolcensis) on one or both poles on 60 of 310 operational nights including at least 16 confirmed crossings during 125 nights when both roadside cameras operated concurrently. This provides definitive evidence that squirrel gliders will readily use tall wooden poles to make glide-crossings of two-lane roads. This is consistent with other investigations of glide poles and suggests that poles should be installed more broadly to reconnect habitat for gliding mammals.
Additional keywords: gliding mammals, road crossing structures, road mitigation
References
Asari, Y., Johnson, C. N., Parsons, M., and Larson, J. (2010). Gap-crossing in fragmented habitats by mahogany gliders (Petaurus gracilis). Do they cross roads and powerline corridors? Australian Mammalogy 32, 10–15.| Gap-crossing in fragmented habitats by mahogany gliders (Petaurus gracilis). Do they cross roads and powerline corridors?Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Ball, T., and Goldingay, R. L. (2008). Can wooden poles be used to reconnect habitat for a gliding marsupial? Landscape and Urban Planning 87, 140–146.
| Can wooden poles be used to reconnect habitat for a gliding marsupial?Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Fahrig, L., and Rytwinski, T. (2009). Effects of roads on animal abundance: an empirical review and synthesis. Ecology and Society 14, art. 21.
Goldingay, R. L., and Sharpe, D. J. (2004). How do we conserve the squirrel glider in Brisbane’s urban matrix? In ‘Conservation of Australia’s Forest Fauna’. 2nd edn. (Ed. D. Lunney.) pp. 663–677. (Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales: Sydney.)
Goldingay, R. L., and Taylor, B. D. (2009). Gliding performance and its relevance to gap crossing by the squirrel glider (Petaurus norfolcensis). Australian Journal of Zoology 57, 99–104.
| Gliding performance and its relevance to gap crossing by the squirrel glider (Petaurus norfolcensis).Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Goldingay, R. L., Taylor, B. D., and Ball, T. (2011). Wooden poles provide habitat connectivity for a gliding mammal. Australian Mammalogy 33, 36–43.
| Wooden poles provide habitat connectivity for a gliding mammal.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Goldingay, R. L., Rohweder, D., and Taylor, B. D. (). Will arboreal mammals use rope bridges across a highway in eastern Australia? Australian Mammalogy , .
Taylor, B. D., and Goldingay, R. L. (2009). Can road crossing-structures improve population viability of an urban gliding mammal? Ecology and Society 14, art13.
Taylor, B. D., and Goldingay, R. L. (2010). Roads and wildlife: impacts, mitigation and implications for wildlife management in Australia. Wildlife Research 37, 320–331.
| Roads and wildlife: impacts, mitigation and implications for wildlife management in Australia.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Taylor, B. D., and Goldingay, R. L. (2012). Restoring connectivity in landscapes fragmented by major roads: a case study using wooden poles as ‘stepping stones’. Restoration Ecology , .
Taylor, A. C., Walker, F. M., Goldingay, R. L., Ball, T., and van der Ree, R. (2011). Degree of landscape fragmentation influences genetic isolation among populations of a gliding mammal. PLoS ONE 6, e26651.
| Degree of landscape fragmentation influences genetic isolation among populations of a gliding mammal.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | 1:CAS:528:DC%2BC3MXhsVyqu7zJ&md5=7876263e86df80ae84957316118a40f3CAS |
van der Ree, R., Cesarini, S., Sunnucks, P., Moore, J. L., and Taylor, A. (2010). Large gaps in canopy reduce road crossing by a gliding mammal. Ecology and Society 15, 35.
Weston, N., Goosem, M., Marsh, H., Cohen, M., and Wilson, R. (2011). Using canopy bridges to link habitat for arboreal mammals: successful trials in the Wet Tropics of Queensland. Australian Mammalogy 33, 93–105.
| Using canopy bridges to link habitat for arboreal mammals: successful trials in the Wet Tropics of Queensland.Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Wilson, R. F., Marsh, H., and Winter, J. (2007). Importance of canopy connectivity for home range and movements of the rainforest arboreal ringtail possum (Hemibelideus lemuroides). Wildlife Research 34, 177–184.
| Importance of canopy connectivity for home range and movements of the rainforest arboreal ringtail possum (Hemibelideus lemuroides).Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
