The Cutest Flying Animals On Earth

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The sugar glider (Petaurus breviceps) is a marsupial native to the forests and rainforests of eastern and northern Australia, New Guinea, and the Bismarck Archipelago. It was introduced to Tasmania and about 15 years ago to the United States.

Not surprisingly, the sugar glider gets its name from the fact that it has a sweet tooth. Apart from leafs, insects and small vertebrates, this omnivore loves to feed on the sweet sap of certain species of eucalyptus, acacia and gum trees. LINK: Presurfer

Baby Sugar Gliders

Sugar Gliders are typically 6 to 7.5 inches (15 to 21 centimeters) in length, have tails nearly as long as their bodies and as thick as a human thumb, and weigh from 3 to 5.3 ounces (90 to 150 grams). They’re generally gray in color with black and cream patches on the underbelly and black or grey ears, but variations include brown, leucistic — lacking pigment, but not all pigment — and albino recessive traits. They have short rounded muzzles, and tails that taper slightly with the last quarter colored dark or black. LINK



Despite the massive loss of natural habitat in Australia, these creatures are adaptable and capable of living in small patches of remnant bush, especially if it does not have to cross large expanses of clear-felled land to reach them.

The Sugar Glider is not endangered, but several close relatives are, particularly Leadbeater’s Possum and the Mahogany Glider — which looks almost exactly like a Sugar Glider to the untrained eye. They are protected by law in Australia, being illegal to keep without a permit, or to capture or sell without a license under special circumstances. LINK: Youtube