Saving cute species
SCIENTISTS are going on the front foot in efforts to save an adorable species from endemic to North Queensland.
A team from James Cook University is working with Terrain NRM to capture footage of mahogany gliders on monitoring cameras and to also catch them in wildlifefriendly traps during night field trips in woodland between Tully and Townsville.
Mahogany gliders were first discovered in 1883, but were lost to science for more than 100 years until their rediscovery in 1989.
The endangered gliding possums live in a narrow band of open, wet woodlands between the Hull River near Tully and Ollera Creek south of Ingham.
Scientists are now catching and releasing gliders so they can learn more about the species, its genetic health and the best conservation actions for recovery.
Researcher Eryn Chang said a recent trip to a small patch of woodland between Townsville and Ingham had been “surprisingly successful”.
“We caught six mahogany gliders in one night,” she said.
“That hasn’t happened before in my work.
“Some nights we record nothing, or we see sugar or squirrel gliders and no mahoganies.
“It’s a slow process to build up data, but one that’s important for this species.”
Ms Chang said gliders were weighed and measured before a tiny sample of ear tissue was collected for genetic testing.
“This gives us the fine details of each individual so we can determine genetic diversity,” she said.
“With enough samples, we can also determine the size of the population, whether populations are connected and whether the species is genetically healthy.”
The population size was estimated at between 1500 and 2000 animals before Cyclone Yasi tore through critical glider habitats north of Ingham.
Terrain NRM is working with scientists as part of a broader project that also includes tree-planting on pri
vate land and controlled burns in glider habitat to thicken woodland in order to stop the reduction of glider movements in the little habitat they have left.