Sugar Glider Projects (NEW)

The Montmorency Sugar Glider Project

Getting to know your local wildlife

Are you interested in seeing wildlife up close in their natural environment? Are you keen to protect wildlife habitat near you? Do you want to help collect data about local wildlife? If so, we’d love to hear from you! Go to ‘Want to get involved’ below or email us at [email protected].

What are Sugar Gliders and how can they help protect threatened wildlife corridors?

These small gliders are nocturnal marsupials that live in and glide between trees. Formerly known as sugar gliders (Petaurus breviceps), in most of Victoria they are now classified as a separate species (Petaurus notatus) and called Krefft’s gliders. Sugar or Krefft’s gliders are a type of possum or ‘Walert’ as said by Wurundjeri People in the Woi Wurrung language.

Ecologist Richard Francis from Abzeco explains why these small gliders are important to our landscape

The Montmorency Sugar (Krefft's) Glider Project

We have established a wide network of around 400 glider nesting boxes on public and private land to take advantage of existing habitat corridors. Over half are on private properties such as residences, kindergartens, schools and a golf course.
The project connects members of the community with local wildlife through experiences in nature, gathering information and then informing planning decisions and strategies for protecting habitat using verifiable data. The project is focused on the eastern side of the Plenty River known as the Vegetation Protection Overlay 1.
With the help of volunteers, we monitored boxes during regular censuses and maintained them as required.
This project benefits from government – such as the Banyule City Council - and private grants. In 2019 it won the Victorian Pick My Project Community Grant. The Eltham Men’s Shed constructed the boxes, many of which have been sold to local residents for a nominal fee.

Are the nest boxes being used?

Yes! We check nest box occupancy (glider in box) and usage rates (good nest in box, but no glider) through censuses using pole cameras. These rates were good at 22% and 47% respectively at the 2023 census and compare favourably to similar southern Australian projects for this species.
We use nest box occupancy data to demonstrate the importance of corridors for maintaining a thriving ecosystem. A LaTrobe University student utilised our project data for her 2023 honours thesis, aiming to understand the habitat and tree preferences influencing gliders’ usage of boxes. Consistent with other research, this study found that maintaining good canopy cover is important for gliders accessing and using boxes.

Want to get involved?

We depend on volunteers for each census. On census day, volunteers are sent out in pairs or small groups with a pole camera to check boxes from the ground, following training on camera and monitor use. It is a wonderful opportunity to explore the local area and its wildlife. Once collected, the census data is made available to participants, residents and Banyule Council.
We’d love to hear from you if you’re interested in participating in the next census. Contact us at [email protected].

Are you hosting a glider box on your property?

We greatly appreciate hosts supporting Banyule’s habitat and our project by providing homes for gliders. For any maintenance issues or if bees have occupied your box, please contact [email protected]. We currently have reached capacity for box numbers in residential properties, but please inform us if you are interested in hosting a box in the future.

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