Register      Login
Wildlife Research Wildlife Research Society
Ecology, management and conservation in natural and modified habitats
Shopping Cart: ( empty )
You are here: Home > Journals > WR > WR06104
RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 34(4)

Time-budget and feeding behaviour of the squirrel glider (Petaurus norfolcensis) in remnant linear habitat

Greg J. Holland A C , Andrew F. Bennett A and Rodney van der Ree B
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Landscape Ecology Research Group, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood, Vic. 3125, Australia.

B Australian Research Centre for Urban Ecology, Royal Botanic Gardens, Melbourne, c/- School of Botany, University of Melbourne, Vic. 3010, Australia.

C Corresponding author. Email: ghol@deakin.edu.au

Wildlife Research 34(4) 288-295 https://doi.org/10.1071/WR06104
Submitted: 11 August 2006  Accepted: 23 May 2007   Published: 28 June 2007

Abstract

The squirrel glider (Petaurus norfolcensis) occurs in forests and woodlands in eastern Australia. In Victoria it is now largely restricted to small, fragmented areas and is considered endangered. In this study, the time-budget, feeding behaviour and related habitat use of the squirrel glider were investigated in a linear remnant of roadside vegetation near Euroa, Victoria. Timed observations of three males and three females, fitted with radio-collars, were made in each of four seasons. Gliders were observed for a total of 53.2 h, during which they devoted 72% of time to foraging activities. Grooming accounted for 16% of observation time. Exudates associated with homopterous insects were the primary food items consumed throughout the year. Arthropods, nectar and pollen, and Acacia gum formed the remainder of the diet. The proportion of time devoted to harvesting these food items showed marked seasonal variation. The primary dependence on homopterous insect exudates in this study area contrasts with other investigations at sites of greater floristic diversity where nectar and pollen were the most important dietary resources. This highlights the need to obtain ecological information from the range of habitats occupied by a species. Large trees are a vital habitat component of remnant linear vegetation in this study area, providing gliders with critical foraging resources. Retention of such trees is essential for the longevity of glider populations.


Acknowledgements

Thanks to Luke Murphy, Michael Dunn, Trish Kendall and Natalie Holland for assistance with animal trapping. Ray Thomas and Jim Tehan provided accommodation while in the field. This study was carried out under Deakin University Animal Experimentation Ethics Committee Permit No. A05/96 and Victorian Department of Natural Resources and Environment Permit No. RP-98–056. Thanks to Ross Goldingay and an anonymous reviewer for comments on earlier drafts of the manuscript.


References

Bennett, A. F. , Lumsden, L. F. , Alexander, J. S. A. , Duncan, P. E. , Johnson, P. G. , Robertson, P. , and Silveira, C. E. (1991). Habitat use by arboreal mammals along an environmental gradient in north-eastern Victoria. Wildlife Research 18, 125–146.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Carr D. E. (1972). ‘The Deadly Feast of Life’. (Heinemann: London.)

Clarke J. L. , Jones M. E. , and Jarman P. J. (1989). A day in the life of a kangaroo: activities and movements of eastern grey kangaroos Macropus giganteus at Wallaby Creek. In ‘Kangaroos, Wallabies and Rat-Kangaroos’. (Eds G. Grigg, P. Jarman and I. Hume.) pp. 611–618. (Surrey Beatty: Sydney.)

Comport, S. S. , Ward, S. J. , and Foley, W. J. (1996). Home ranges, time budgets and food-tree use in a high-density tropical population of greater gliders, Petauroides volans minor (Pseudocheiridae: Marsupialia). Wildlife Research 23, 401–419.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Cork S. J. , and Foley W. J. (1991). Digestive and metabolic strategies of arboreal mammalian folivores in relation to chemical defences in temperate and tropical forests. In ‘Plant Defences Against Mammalian Herbivory’. (Eds R. T. Palo and C. T. Robbins.) pp. 133–166. (CRC Press: Boca Raton, FL.)

Department of Sustainability and Environment (2003). Advisory List of Threatened Vertebrate Fauna in Victoria – 2003. Department of Sustainability and Environment, East Melbourne, Victoria.

Dickman C. R. (1991). Use of trees by ground-dwelling mammals: implications for management. In ‘Conservation of Australia’s Forest Fauna’. (Ed. D. Lunney.) pp. 125–136. (The Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales: Sydney.)

Dobson, M. , Goldingay, R. L. , and Sharpe, D. J. (2005). Feeding behaviour of the squirrel glider in remnant habitat in Brisbane. Australian Mammalogy 27, 27–35.
Environment Conservation Council (2001). Box–ironbark forests and woodlands investigation final report. Environment Conservation Council, Melbourne.

Goldingay, R. L. (1986). Feeding behaviour of the yellow-bellied glider, Petaurus australis (Marsupialia: Petauridae), at Bombala, New South Wales. Australian Mammalogy 9, 17–25.
Goldingay R. L. , and Jackson S. M. (2004). A review of the ecology of the Australian Petauridae. In ‘The Biology of Australian Possums and Gliders’. (Eds R. L. Goldingay and S. M. Jackson.) pp. 376–400. (Surrey Beatty: Sydney.)

Goldingay, R. L. , and Kavanagh, R. P. (1995). Foraging behaviour and habitat use of the feathertail glider (Acrobates pygmaeus) at Waratah Creek, New South Wales. Wildlife Research 22, 457–470.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Holland G. (1998). Time budget and related aspects of the foraging behaviour and habitat use of the squirrel glider Petaurus norfolcensis. B.Sc.(Honours) Thesis, Deakin University, Melbourne.

Holland, G. J. (2001). Opportunistic vertebrate predation by the squirrel glider Petaurus norfolcensis. Victorian Naturalist 118, 123–126.
Kehl J. , and Borsboom A. (1984). Home range, den tree use and activity patterns in the greater glider, Petauroides volans. In ‘Possums and Gliders’. (Eds A. P. Smith and I. D. Hume.) pp. 229–236. (Australian Mammal Society: Sydney.)

Kennedy, S. J. , and Tzaros, C. L. (2005). Foraging ecology of the swift parrot Lathamus discolor in the box–ironbark forests and woodlands of Victoria. Pacific Conservation Biology 11, 158–173.
Lee A. K. , and Cockburn A. (1985). ‘Evolutionary Ecology of Marsupials.’ (Cambridge University Press: Cambridge.)

Lowman, M. D. , and Heatwole, H. (1992). Spatial and temporal variability in defoliation of Australian eucalypts. Ecology 73, 129–142.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | MacLennan D. G. (1984). The feeding behaviour and activity patterns of the brushtail possum, Trichosurus vulpecula, in an open eucalypt woodland in southeast Queensland. In ‘Possums and Gliders’. (Eds A. P. Smith and I. D. Hume.) pp. 155–161. (Australian Mammal Society: Sydney.)

Menkhorst P. W. (1995). Squirrel glider. In ‘Mammals of Victoria: Distribution, Ecology and Conservation’. (Ed. P. W. Menkhorst.) pp. 113–114. (Oxford University Press: Melbourne.)

Menkhorst, P. W. , and Collier, M. (1987). Diet of the squirrel glider, Petaurus norfolcensis (Marsupialia: Petauridae), in Victoria. Australian Mammalogy 11, 109–116.
Owen J. (1980). ‘Feeding Strategy.’ (Oxford University Press: Melbourne.)

Paton, D. C. (1980). The importance of manna, honeydew and lerp in the diets of honeyeaters. Emu 80, 213–226.
Smith A. , and Lee A. (1984). The evolution of strategies for survival and reproduction in possums and gliders. In ‘Possums and Gliders’. (Eds A. P. Smith and I. D. Hume.) pp. 17–33. (Australian Mammal Society: Sydney.)

Smith, A. P. (1982). Diet and feeding strategies of the marsupial sugar glider in temperate Australia. Journal of Animal Ecology 51, 149–166.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | Suckling G. C. (1995). Squirrel glider. In ‘The Mammals of Australia’. (Ed. R. Strahan.) pp. 234–235. (Reed Books: Sydney.)

van der Ree R. (2000). Ecology of arboreal marsupials in a network of remnant linear habitats. Ph.D. Thesis, Deakin University, Melbourne.

van der Ree, R. (2002). The population ecology of the squirrel glider (Petaurus norfolcensis) within a network of remnant linear habitats. Wildlife Research 29, 329–340.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | van der Ree R. , and Suckling G. C. (In press). The squirrel glider. In ‘The Mammals of Australia’. (Australian Museum: Sydney.)

Wilson, J. , and Bennett, A. F. (1999). Patchiness of a floral resource: flowering of red ironbark Eucalyptus tricarpa in a box and ironbark forest. Victorian Naturalist 116, 48–53.
Woodgate P. , and Black P. (1988). ‘Forest Cover Changes in Victoria.’ (Department of Conservation, Forests and Lands: Melbourne.)