HOME-RANGE ESTIMATES AND HABITAT OF THE YELLOW-BELLIED GLIDER (PETAURUS-AUSTRALIS) AT WARATAH CREEK, NEW-SOUTH-WALES

The yellow-bellied glider (Petaurus australis), the largest of the exu divorous marsupials, lives in small family groupings and occupies virt ually exclusive home ranges. A variety of estimation techniques were u sed to determine the home-range area of five glider groups. Two sets o f data were analysed for each glider group; one included the locations of all observations while the other utilised a subset considered to r epresent independent observations based on a 3-h interval between cons ecutive locations. The techniques favoured for estimating home-range a rea, minimum convex polygon (MCP) and 95% isopleth of the harmonic mea n (95% HM), gave mean values of 59 ha and 46 ha, respectively, when al l data were included. These values were 28% and 14% larger, respective ly, than those estimated with independent data. An extrapolation that accounted for the influence of the number of locations on the area est imated gave a mean MCP value of 63 ha for the five groups. This value was compared with estimates for other exudivorous mammals and is much greater than that predicted from the body weight of this species. The home ranges (defined by the 95% HM) of the five glider groups included different proportions of the seven forest types available in the stud y area. The forest type in which Eucalyptus ovata predominated was ide ntified as a key habitat. It was the least abundant yet was included i n all five home ranges, unlike several of the more abundant forest typ es which were absent from some home ranges. The above results are disc ussed in relation to forest management and conservation.