Gliders of Australia : A Natural History

Another significant gap in UNSW Press' popular and definitive Australian Natural History Series is about to be filled with the publication of this book.

The gliders, while rarely seen by most Australians, are an important group of marsupials whose long-term survival prospects are being seriously threatened by land-clearing and the logging of our old-growth forests This book deals with all six species of Australian gliders, which range in size from the tiny 12-gram Feathertail Glider to the 1.3-kg Greater Glider.

It relates the story of this extraordinary group of animals, which possess a fascinating array of adaptations to their nocturnal and gliding existence.

These include eyes that act like an 'inbuilt rangefinder' to help judge gliding distances, elongated limbs and specially developed toepads to help grip branches when landing, and a padded pouch to protect the young when mothers finish a glide and land on a tree trunk.

In truth, they are some of Australia's most remarkable animals. The book touches on such diverse topics as the origins of gliding and gliders, their life history, diet and behaviour, and how to study gliders, and documents the efforts now underway to conserve them and their forest homes.