Forests NSW surveys have located a
squirrel glider colony in Candole
State Forest, south east of Grafton.
Photo copyright Andrew Henley/
Auscape International

Squirrel gliders (Petaurus norfolcensis) are usually secretive little creatures that rarely allow themselves to be seen, except for the odd silhouette gliding between trees at dusk and dawn.

They are also under threat as their preferred habitat of open woodland and forest has been cleared over time for cattle grazing and other human activities.

So it came as a bit of surprise for Forests NSW ecology team leader Peter Simon to hear almost a cacophony of squirrel voices answer his call playback in Candole State Forest, south east of Grafton.

Where there had only been two records noted here for squirrel gliders, and one of these was over 20 years old, Forests NSW now has more than 20 and counting in the space of a few nights.

“This burst of activity is closely linked with the abundance of flowering species that are available in the area,” said Forests NSW ecologist, Brian Tolhurst.

“But as they have a home range of only about four to eight hectares, there seems to be a reasonably dense population in a forest that most people would see as a fairly ordinary coastal woodland.”

What an affront to the squirrel gliders who call this home. They have an abundance of eucalyptus species flowering at once, including blackbutt, ironbark, white mahogany, red gum and melaleuca, with plenty of tree hollows to den in.

“There is a continual flowering resource here all year round, and while it is usual to find these animals spread fairly evenly along the east coast from southern Queensland to central Victoria, there has been a gap in records around Coffs Harbour,” Brian said.

The new records have triggered the development of a site-specific planning area for the colony. This means that as a result of the normal pre-harvest ecology surveys there will be an area of up to eight hectares for each record excluded from harvesting operations to protect their food and den resources.

Forests NSW forest assistant, Matt Dobson, who has undertaken an honours study of the squirrel glider, says they are fairly territorial and will actively ward off other groups of squirrel gliders moving into their home range.

“They don’t seem to worry about other arboreal species, but as soon as another group of squirrel gliders tries to move into their food resource they will generally put on a territorial display,” Matt said.

The gliders will utilise several nesting hollows throughout their home range, moving every few weeks or less.

“They are doing this to either avoid predators, or to keep close to food sources, or both,” Matt said.
Predators include the powerful owl, as one of the previous records Forests NSW collected for a squirrel glider in Candole State Forest has come from a pellet from an owl which contained evidence of a glider as part of its diet.

The squirrel glider is listed as a vulnerable species in the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act. It is nocturnal and shelters in tree hollows, living in family groups of between two and ten.

They can glide up to 50 metres, and generally feed on nectar, pollen, flowers, acacia gum and arils, and insects.

This article appears in the Spring 2007 edition of Bush Telegraph Magazine.