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Mahogany Glider (Petaurus gracilis)

The mahogany glider is an endangered, nocturnal arboreal marsupial restricted to lowland open woodland in coastal north Queensland. On development sites, clearing of mature trees, loss of glide connections, road crossings, fencing and disturbance to den trees can remove habitat or isolate animals that use large home ranges.

Conservation status

Commonwealth, EPBC Act 1999: Endangered.

Queensland, Nature Conservation Act 1992: Endangered.

Breeding season

The following pattern applies to the known north Queensland range. Timing is based on the documented dry-season breeding period and wet-season weaning period. Mahogany gliders remain in the region year round and are not migratory.

For project timing, assume suitable habitat may be occupied throughout the year. Confirm local breeding and den use through targeted assessment rather than relying on seasonal absence.

  • Breeding, mating and births: Breeding occurs mainly from April to October. One or two young are born, usually in one litter per year.
  • Young dependent in pouch or den: Young are weaned at 4 to 5 months and weaning occurs during the wet season. Dependence can therefore extend from the breeding period into the wet months.
  • Foraging and nightly movement: Animals are active throughout the year. Average nightly travel is about 1,500 m, with longer movements from the late dry season into the wet season and shorter movements in the early to middle dry season.
  • Habitat and den use: Individuals and pairs use several dens across a home range throughout the year. Den trees and connected food plants remain relevant in every month.
  • Highest clearing risk: Risk is highest from April to October because breeding is underway. Risk remains elevated from November to March where young may still be dependent and where disturbance can remove food or den access.

Identification

Mahogany gliders are medium-sized gliding marsupials with a distinctive long, slender tail and warm brown underparts. They are usually detected by spotlighting, direct observation, den inspection or characteristic habitat use rather than by calls.

The species has grey-brown to mahogany-brown upperparts, a dark dorsal stripe and a belly ranging from cream in young animals to buff, apricot or mahogany brown. The gliding membrane extends from the wrist to the ankle. The tail is long and relatively thin, with a black lower portion, and is used for stability during gliding and landing.

Head and body length: Males 230 to 275 mm, average 254 mm. Females 225 to 270 mm, average 248 mm.

Tail length: Males 335 to 395 mm, average 370 mm. Females 345 to 405 mm, average 377 mm.

Weight: Males 330 to 500 g, average 407 g. Females 310 to 454 g, average 365 g.

Identification: Distinguishing features

The closest likely comparison is the squirrel glider, Petaurus norfolcensis. A mahogany glider is substantially heavier and longer, with a longer, more slender tail and buff to mahogany-brown underparts. Mahogany gliders average about 365 to 407 g and approximately 625 mm total length, compared with about 230 g and 480 mm for squirrel gliders.

  • Check the long slender tail, dark dorsal stripe, warm coloured belly and wrist-to-ankle gliding membrane.
  • Use body size and tail shape together when separating the species from squirrel gliders, especially where lighting or viewing distance makes colour unreliable.

Identification: Field signs and detection

Mahogany gliders are generally quiet and rarely call. Calls are usually one or a few coarse, deep nasal grunts, often described as “na-when”, and are most often made between 22:00 and 01:00. A pale red eyeshine may be visible when the animal is spotlighted.

Scats are reported as approximately 17 mm by 5 mm, sometimes with gum bands, but they are difficult to locate in tropical forest. The species uses several den trees within its territory, so repeated use of hollows or den entrances in suitable mature trees can provide supporting evidence.

Average glide distance: Approximately 30 m.

Longest recorded glide: 60 m.

Typical nightly travel: Approximately 1,500 m, with a recorded range of 600 to 3,400 m.

  • Do not rely on call playback to detect this species. Survey guidance states that mahogany gliders do not make loud vocalisations.
  • Use spotlighting, direct observation of potential den trees and suitable arboreal survey methods where access and animal welfare controls permit.
  • Record glide paths, den trees, mature trees and connected canopy on clearing and construction sites.

Distribution: National range

The mahogany glider is endemic to Queensland and has one of the smallest ranges of any Australian glider. Its known range is a narrow coastal band in the southern Wet Tropics, where remaining habitat is divided among several subpopulations.

The species is known only from Queensland, between Ollera Creek, approximately 40 km south-east of Ingham, and the Hull River near Tully. The occupied band extends about 120 km north to south and reaches inland by approximately 100 km in places.

Most records are from elevations below 100 m, although the wider habitat summary gives a limit of about 120 m. Modelled suitable areas above 500 m and on nearby islands have been reported, but the species is primarily known from low elevations.

  • The relevant Australian bioregional setting is the southern Wet Tropics of north Queensland, including lowland coastal woodland between Tully and Ingham.
  • No confirmed mainland range outside Queensland is given in the supplied documents.

Distribution: Subpopulations and strongholds

The remaining population is arranged as five primary subpopulations, three secondary populations and two range-limit subpopulations. The recovery plan identifies priority corridors between habitat patches, reflecting the species’ poor ability to disperse across wide gaps.

Known distribution: Ollera Creek to the Hull River, about 120 km north to south.

Population structure: Five primary subpopulations, three secondary populations and two range-limit subpopulations.

Estimated wild population: Approximately 1,500 to 2,000 individuals.

Population trend: The population trajectory was assessed as still declining.

  • Treat all suitable habitat within the known distribution as potentially important, including newly detected locations and habitat associated with mapped subpopulations.
  • Retain connections between occupied patches and investigate narrow habitat links before clearing or road construction.

Distribution: Remaining habitat

Habitat has been reduced by approximately 50% from its historical extent in the 2021 recovery plan. Earlier recovery information reported that only about 20% of former habitat, or 106,669 ha, remained available after clearing. The figures come from different assessments and should not be treated as interchangeable.

Habitat: Vegetation types

Mahogany gliders need lowland, open vegetation with enough mature trees for food, denning and gliding. Habitat quality depends on both plant diversity and an open structure maintained by an appropriate fire history.

The main habitat is tropical lowland open eucalypt and melaleuca woodland, including open wet sclerophyll woodland. The most suitable communities are mixed open forest and mixed woodland, with a variety of food and den tree species.

Habitat use is associated with trees in the Myrtaceae and Mimosaceae families, particularly Corymbia clarksoniana, Eucalyptus platyphylla, Lophostemon suaveolens and Melaleuca dealbata. Monotypic stands of Poplar Gum, Broad-leaved Tea-tree or other food and shelter trees can also be used, although their value may be lower where plant diversity is limited.

  • Mixed Open Forest covers about 51,870 ha of mapped remaining habitat.
  • Mixed Woodland covers about 55,760 ha.
  • Monotypic stands cover about 29,988 ha, and emergent suitable trees in otherwise unsuitable vegetation cover about 3,504 ha.

Habitat: Structure and setting

The species is associated with reduced middle and upper canopy cover rather than closed forest. It needs trees tall enough to support glides between patches, and it can cross tracks, roads and powerline corridors when trees on both sides allow a complete glide and landing.

Rainforest and mangroves are rarely used or traversed. Sclerophyll thickening and transition to rainforest can remove the open structure and food plants required by the species.

Typical elevation: Primarily below 100 m, with habitat information extending to about 120 m.

Glide distance: Average approximately 30 m, longest recorded 60 m.

  • Map mature trees, open canopy, den trees, likely glide paths and gaps between retained vegetation before works begin.
  • Assess small connected patches on both sides of roads, tracks and easements. They may be used as supplemental foraging habitat.

Habitat: Climate and disturbance context

The species occurs in a warm, wet tropical coastal region with seasonal rainfall. Its woodland habitat has historically been shaped and maintained by fire. Reduced or altered fire regimes can allow open sclerophyll vegetation to develop into denser sclerophyll or pioneer rainforest communities.

  • Consider fire history, weed cover, grazing pressure and canopy change when assessing habitat condition.
  • Avoid treating a cleared or structurally altered patch as unsuitable solely because animals were not observed during a single survey.

Foraging habitat: Food items

Mahogany gliders forage mainly in trees and usually forage alone. They need a sequence of flowering, sap-producing and fruiting plants across the year, so food diversity and connectivity are important at the scale of the home range.

The diet includes nectar, pollen, tree sap, lerps, honeydew, invertebrates, mistletoe fruit and arils from Acacia seed pods. Pollen is an important protein source, and studies found that 30% to 99% of consumed pollen grains were digested.

Important nectar and pollen sources include Corymbia, Eucalyptus and Melaleuca. Other documented foods include sap from White Siris, Albizia procera, and Hickory Wattle, Acacia mangium; arils from Acacia crassicarpa, A. flavescens and A. mangium; and nectar or sap from Johnson’s Grass Tree, Xanthorrhoea johnsonii.

  • Retain flowering Myrtaceae and Mimosaceae trees where practicable.
  • Retain mature Acacia, Albizia, Corymbia, Eucalyptus, Melaleuca and grass tree resources within connected habitat.
  • Inspect vegetation edges and riparian or rainforest margins for flowering Cadargi, Corymbia torelliana, and Euodia, Melicope elleryana, which are documented food plants in those settings.

Foraging habitat: Foraging movement

Individuals travel an average of approximately 1,500 m each night and may travel 600 to 3,400 m. They use a foraging loop around the home range, visiting trees that are flowering or fruiting and moving to replacement food trees as current resources finish.

They usually forage alone. Small mature vegetation patches across a transport corridor may be used as supplemental foraging habitat when a connected glide route remains.

Nightly travel: Average 1,500 m, with a recorded range of 600 to 3,400 m.

Foraging pattern: Usually solitary, using a repeated loop through the home range.

  • Assess the whole connected foraging area rather than only the proposed clearing footprint.
  • Maintain canopy links and suitable landing trees on both sides of roads, powerline corridors and other gaps.

Breeding habitat: Breeding biology

Mahogany gliders are generally socially monogamous and commonly occur as male and female pairs. Breeding habitat needs connected woodland, mature den trees and enough seasonal food to support females and dependent young.

Breeding occurs in the drier months, mainly from April to October. Females generally produce one litter each year, although a second litter may be raised if the first is lost before leaving the pouch or if breeding occurs early.

Young are weaned at 4 to 5 months, usually during the wet season when insect food is more available. Females can breed from approximately 12 to 18 months of age.

Breeding season: April to October, mainly during the drier months.

Young per litter: One or two young, with an average litter size of 1.55 reported.

Litters per year: Usually one. A second may occur if the first litter is lost or breeding occurs early.

Weaning: At approximately 4 to 5 months, during the wet season.

Sexual maturity: Approximately 12 to 18 months.

Life expectancy: Approximately 5 to 6 years in the wild.

Breeding habitat: Habitat for breeding

Breeding pairs need access to several den trees within a connected home range. Den trees are generally mature living trees, often Myrtaceae, with entrances high above the ground. Food diversity across the home range is needed because nectar, pollen, sap and invertebrate availability changes through the year.

  • Retain mature den trees and nearby trees that provide glide routes and feeding resources.
  • Avoid clearing or isolating den trees during the breeding season and while young may still be dependent.
  • Survey connected habitat around a den tree, not only the tree itself, because a pair may use 6 to 16 dens across its home range.

Sheltering habitat: Den trees and hollows

Mahogany gliders shelter in tree hollows and den sites, mostly in living mature trees. Pairs and individuals use several dens across their home range rather than relying on one refuge.

Individuals use between 3 and 9 dens, while socially monogamous pairs use about 6 to 16 dens. Dens are usually in living trees, although dead trees are occasionally used.

Common den trees include Clarkson’s Bloodwood, Corymbia clarksoniana, Poplar Gum, Eucalyptus platyphylla, and Forest Red Gum, Eucalyptus tereticornis. Other documented den trees include Corymbia intermedia, Corymbia tessellaris, Eucalyptus pellita, Lophostemon suaveolens, Melaleuca dealbata, Melaleuca leucadendra and Melaleuca viridiflora.

Dens per individual: Usually 3 to 9.

Dens per pair: About 6 to 16.

Den tree height: Recorded den trees range from 6.5 to 61.6 m.

Den entrance height: Recorded entrances are 7 to 33 m above ground.

  • Retain living and dead mature trees with suitable hollows, including trees that are not currently occupied.
  • Inspect hollow-bearing trees and likely den entrances before felling or limb removal.
  • Treat trees within connected habitat as potential den resources even when no animal is observed.

Sheltering habitat: Thermal and canopy features

Den entrance aspect and canopy cover affect den temperature. North-facing entrances with greater canopy cover have been recorded as up to 7 degrees Celsius cooler than south-facing entrances or entrances with little cover.

  • Retain canopy around known or potential den entrances, particularly where it provides shade and connects the tree to neighbouring glide trees.
  • Plan clearing buffers around hollow-bearing trees so that wind exposure, heat and loss of glide connections are reduced.

Threats: Clearing and fragmentation

The main risks are loss and fragmentation of open woodland, changes to fire and grazing regimes, weeds, transport corridors, fencing, predators and extreme weather. These threats often act together by removing food and den trees, reducing movement between patches and increasing isolation.

Broadscale clearing for agriculture has reduced the habitat by approximately 50% in the current recovery plan. Clearing for agriculture, roads and residential development has left habitat highly fragmented. The species has large home ranges and is a poor disperser across gaps, so removal of small connected areas can affect occupancy.

  • Avoid clearing mature food trees, hollow-bearing trees, glide paths and narrow links between habitat patches.
  • Assess indirect loss of habitat where a road, easement or construction corridor separates trees that previously formed a usable glide route.
  • Retain or restore connected open woodland rather than isolated tree islands.

Threats: Roads, easements and fencing

Major transport corridors disrupt movements, and road deaths have been recorded on the Bruce Highway. Barbed wire can entangle the gliding membrane and cause death. Powerline and other easement corridors can also interrupt movement where suitable trees are absent.

  • Use wildlife crossing measures, such as glide poles where appropriate, at road and easement crossings.
  • Replace or modify barbed wire near occupied or suitable habitat with glider-friendly fencing.
  • Inspect roads, construction compounds and fence lines for carcasses, entanglement and attempted crossings.

Threats: Fire, weeds and grazing

Reduced or altered fire regimes can allow open sclerophyll woodland to thicken or transition to pioneer rainforest, reducing hollows, open canopy and food plants. Weeds can suppress grass cover, alter fuel continuity and affect fire intensity. Intensive grazing may reduce understorey cover and species composition and can increase weed spread.

  • Use a fire regime that maintains suitable open woodland structure and is consistent with approved local fire planning.
  • Control woody weeds and prevent weed spread through construction traffic, soil movement and grazing pressure.
  • Manage grazing so that understorey structure and fire ecotones are retained.

Threats: Predators and extreme events

Feral cats and dogs are recognised threats. Natural predators include owls, pythons and goannas. The species’ restricted range also increases its exposure to cyclones, severe wildfires and other extreme weather that can remove habitat or reduce nectar availability.

  • Control domestic and feral cats and dogs around worksites and connected habitat in accordance with approved fauna management procedures.
  • Secure food waste and avoid creating shelter or denning opportunities for pest animals around compounds.
  • Include cyclone, severe fire and other extreme weather response triggers in project planning where suitable habitat is present.

Survey methodology: 1. Habitat and resource assessment

Survey design must account for the Mahogany Glider's nocturnal activity, low detectability and dependence on connected lowland open forest and woodland. Combine habitat assessment with night searches and, where justified, trapping or camera methods.

Survey the full proposed disturbance area and representative retained habitat during daylight.

Map open eucalypt and melaleuca woodland, mature den trees, tree hollows, food trees, habitat corridors and gaps that may exceed the glider's normal glide distance.

Record Corymbia clarksoniana, Eucalyptus platyphylla, Lophostemon suaveolens and Melaleuca dealbata, which are associated with Mahogany Glider presence.

Assess the availability of flowering and sap-producing trees because the species needs a diverse sequence of food plants across the year.

Inspect habitat links across roads, tracks, powerline corridors and other easements because gliders can cross gaps when trees are tall enough for a complete glide and landing.

Typical elevation: Primarily below 100 metres

Known distribution: Between Ollera Creek, about 40 kilometres south of Ingham, and the Hull River near Tully

Average glide distance: 30 metres

Longest recorded glide: 60 metres

Typical den use: Individuals use 3 to 9 den trees, and pairs use 6 to 16 dens

Survey methodology: 2. Spotlighting and stagwatching

Survey after dark because Mahogany Gliders are nocturnal and are active for about 8.0 to 10.1 hours each night.

Search trees, glide paths, den trees and habitat edges quietly with a hand-held spotlight or night scope, and use binoculars to confirm identification where required.

Target mature trees and connected open woodland rather than rainforest or mangrove, which are rarely used or traversed.

Allow time for the species' low vocal activity and do not rely on call detection or call playback, because the survey guidelines state that Mahogany Gliders do not make loud vocalisations.

Record the time, weather, observer position, search route, animal location, behaviour, direction of movement and nearby habitat features.

Repeat night searches where the species is not detected but suitable habitat is present, particularly across separate weather conditions and habitat units.

Average nightly movement: About 1,500 metres, with a recorded range of 600 to 3,400 metres

Typical glide distance: 30 metres

Activity period: About 8.0 to 10.1 hours per night

  • Do not use call playback as the primary detection method for this species.
  • Avoid unnecessary repeated illumination or close approach to a den tree.
  • Treat a pale red eyeshine, a long slender tail and a gliding membrane extending from wrist to ankle as useful field clues, and confirm the identification before authorising disturbance.

Survey methodology: 3. Cage trapping, cameras and den resources

Use cage traps only where a suitably qualified person has prepared a species-specific trapping plan and the required animal ethics and wildlife approvals are in place.

The Australian survey guidelines recommend cage traps for medium-sized arboreal mammals such as the Mahogany Glider.

Set traps in suitable trees or other stable arboreal positions, provide species-appropriate food and bedding, protect traps from rain and heat, and check them early each morning.

Close traps during the day and reopen them in the late afternoon to reduce exposure to heat and capture of diurnal fauna.

Run trapping for 3 to 5 consecutive nights when trapping is selected, unless the approved method specifies otherwise.

Use camera traps at den trees, glide paths, habitat links and likely food trees where trapping is unsuitable or unnecessary.

Record all trap locations, checking times, captures, non-target fauna, weather, bait and animal condition.

Recommended trapping duration: 3 to 5 consecutive nights

Home range in contiguous habitat: About 19 hectares for males, 20 hectares for females and 23 hectares for pairs

Home range in fragmented habitat: About 11 hectares for males, 7 hectares for females and 12 hectares for pairs

  • Do not use hair sampling as a stand-alone detection method for this species because the survey guidelines list Petaurus gracilis as not identifiable from a hair sample.
  • Do not leave any trap unchecked overnight or during unsuitable heat, rain or cold conditions.
  • Use nest boxes or den boxes as supplementary detection or mitigation devices only after considering their design, placement and temperature performance in the tropical climate.

Survey methodology: Minimum effort and reporting

  • Use a documented survey design that covers all potential habitat resources and each vegetation or disturbance unit within the project area.
  • Use night spotlighting or stagwatching as the primary field method, and repeat searches where suitable habitat remains untested or detection conditions were poor.
  • Where trapping is approved, use cage traps for 3 to 5 consecutive nights, check them early each morning and document the full effort.
  • Do not count call playback as survey effort for the Mahogany Glider.
  • Record negative results as well as detections, including survey dates, start and finish times, weather, observers, equipment, transects, search area, trap nights and habitat condition.
  • Photograph or accurately map every detection, den tree, hollow-bearing tree and relevant corridor.
  • Submit confirmed records, including reliable negative or incidental records where requested, to the relevant Queensland wildlife database and the Australian Government species records system.
  • Report survey limitations and any departure from the approved survey or fauna management plan in the project environmental records.

Before habitat disturbance: Avoid and minimise habitat loss

Plan the work around retention of connected habitat, mature den trees and a continuous supply of food plants. The species is listed as Endangered under both the EPBC Act and Queensland legislation.

Retain known and potential Mahogany Glider habitat within the project area, with priority given to mixed open forest, mixed open woodland, mature den trees and connected habitat corridors.

Avoid removing small connected vegetation patches, because the species may use them as supplementary foraging habitat across transport corridors.

Retain trees used for dens, including mature Corymbia clarksoniana, Eucalyptus platyphylla, Eucalyptus tereticornis, Lophostemon suaveolens and suitable Melaleuca trees.

Keep glide paths between retained trees open and functional, and design crossings or easements so that animals can reach tall trees on both sides.

Avoid fragmenting subpopulations and priority corridors where an alternative alignment, work footprint or construction method is available.

Replace barbed wire with plain wire where fencing is part of the project.

Estimated remaining habitat: About 50 per cent of the historic habitat remains

Estimated total population: About 1,500 to 2,000 individuals

Known population structure: Five primary subpopulations, three secondary populations and two range-limit subpopulations

  • Mark retained habitat, den trees, food trees and corridors on the construction drawings and in the field before clearing.
  • Do not assume that a small patch is unimportant because it is smaller than a typical home range.

Before habitat disturbance: Approvals and work planning

Check whether the action is likely to have a significant impact on this EPBC Act listed species and obtain advice on referral or approval requirements before work starts.

Check Queensland wildlife, clearing, animal ethics and rehabilitation requirements, including permits for handling, trapping, relocation or keeping an injured animal.

Prepare a fauna management plan that identifies survey methods, exclusion areas, clearing limits, fauna spotter catcher authority, stop-work triggers, response contacts and reporting requirements.

Schedule clearing and high-noise activities to avoid the April to October breeding season where the project risk assessment shows that timing can be changed.

Stage clearing so that animals can move towards retained habitat, while preventing movement into active work areas, roads or unsafe structures.

Include emergency planning for cyclones, severe wildfires and other extreme weather events because these can affect habitat continuity and food availability.

Breeding season: Usually April to October

Young: Usually 1 or 2 young, weaned at 4 to 5 months

Listed status: Endangered under the EPBC Act and Queensland Nature Conservation Act 1992

Before habitat disturbance: Pre-clearance preparation

Complete the approved pre-clearance survey shortly before disturbance, with night searches focused on den trees, connected woodland, food trees and the proposed clearing edge.

Mark all retained trees, habitat corridors, exclusion areas, access tracks and machinery limits before mobilisation.

Use exclusion fencing where it can safely prevent entry into the work area without blocking movement between retained habitat patches.

Brief machinery operators and supervisors on the species' appearance, nocturnal activity, likely den locations and the stop-work procedure.

Confirm the availability of an authorised fauna spotter catcher, a veterinarian or wildlife carer, transport equipment and suitable nearby release habitat before clearing begins.

Remove or modify barbed wire and other entanglement hazards within the work area before night movement begins.

During habitat disturbance: Daily clearing controls

Keep clearing controlled, slow and observable. The fauna spotter catcher must have authority to stop machinery and must remain able to inspect trees, ground cover and escape routes as work proceeds.

Inspect the work area each day before machinery starts, including retained trees, ground cover, temporary fencing, access routes and any new hazards.

Clear only the approved footprint and keep machinery outside marked habitat, den tree and corridor exclusion areas.

Use a staged process in which the fauna spotter catcher checks the next section immediately before clearing and maintains visual control of the machinery and likely escape routes.

Avoid night clearing unless it is specifically approved and supported by a nocturnal fauna management method.

Control vehicle speeds and install wildlife warning measures on project roads where animals may cross.

Keep workers, dogs, cats and other predators out of retained habitat and prevent domestic or feral predator access to the work area.

  • Stop work if the fauna spotter catcher cannot safely inspect the next tree, hollow, log, ground layer or escape route.
  • Stop work if an animal is found, injured, trapped, entangled or moving towards machinery, traffic or an unsafe edge.
  • Stop work if a den tree, hollow, connected corridor or other habitat feature outside the approved impact area is damaged.

During habitat disturbance: Fauna spotter catcher response

Use only appropriately authorised and experienced personnel to capture, handle, relocate or release a Mahogany Glider.

Do not chase, corner, pull or catch a glider by the tail, patagium or limbs.

Allow an uninjured animal to move to nearby retained habitat where this is safe and consistent with the approved fauna management plan.

If capture is required, use a method that protects the animal's gliding membrane, tail, claws and limbs, and minimise handling time and heat exposure.

Keep the animal in a secure, quiet and ventilated container appropriate for an arboreal glider until release or transfer.

Transport an injured animal promptly to an approved veterinarian or wildlife carer, and record the transfer and treatment outcome.

Do not release an animal into isolated habitat, unsuitable closed rainforest or a location outside the approved nearby release area.

Normal social arrangement: Usually a pair, although solitary animals also occur

Den use: Individuals use 3 to 9 dens, and pairs use 6 to 16 dens

  • Treat a suspected dependent young, a glider repeatedly returning to a den tree or a pair separated during clearing as a higher-risk event requiring advice from the relevant wildlife authority or species recovery contact.
  • Do not handle a glider merely to improve a photograph or confirm an identification when the animal can be identified safely in place.

During habitat disturbance: Habitat features and records

Inspect hollow-bearing trees and mature den trees before felling, and retain them wherever the approved design allows.

Check logs, fallen timber, dense vegetation and other ground features for sheltering or injured fauna before they are moved or crushed.

Do not remove corridor vegetation, food trees or glide structures outside the approved footprint.

Manage weeds, spoil, lighting, noise and temporary fencing so that they do not block movement through retained habitat.

Record every detection, capture, injury, mortality, relocation, damaged habitat feature, stop-work event and corrective action.

Photograph and map the location of any animal, den, hollow, entanglement, road strike or fence strike, and provide the record to the project environmental officer.

  • Do not create new ponds or wetland features as a substitute for the glider's open woodland habitat.
  • Keep any temporary lighting directed away from retained habitat and known den trees where practicable.

After habitat disturbance: Post-clearance checks

Post-clearance work must confirm that no animal remains in the impact area and that retained habitat, corridors and fauna controls are functioning as planned.

Complete a systematic inspection of the cleared area, retained edge and access routes after each clearing stage.

Check felled or damaged trees, hollow sections, logs, machinery, stockpiles, drains, fencing and temporary structures for trapped, injured or displaced fauna.

Use follow-up spotlighting, camera traps or other approved methods at retained habitat and corridor interfaces where the pre-clearance survey recorded suitable habitat or a detection.

Inspect retained den trees and glide paths after storms, high winds, construction vibration or other events that may have caused damage.

Keep exclusion fencing and other controls in place until the environmental officer confirms that the work risk has ended.

After habitat disturbance: Monitoring and reporting

Compare post-disturbance records with the pre-clearance survey, including detections, habitat condition, den trees, corridor continuity and food-tree condition.

Monitor retained habitat and restored corridors for use by Mahogany Gliders, evidence of road or fence strike, predator activity, weed invasion and changes in open woodland structure.

Report all confirmed deaths, injuries, relocations, unexpected habitat loss and breaches of approval conditions to the relevant regulator and project contacts.

Submit confirmed records to the relevant Queensland wildlife database and update the Australian Government species record where required.

Review the fauna management plan after each clearing stage and amend controls when monitoring identifies a new risk.

Recovery planning horizon: Success criteria are assessed within 10 years

Priority connectivity measure: Connectivity restored within 5 priority corridors

  • Retain survey data, photographs, maps, trap and search effort, animal handling records, veterinary records and corrective actions in the project environmental file.
  • Use the recovery plan's success measures as the basis for longer-term reporting, including habitat extent, population trajectory, occupied area and corridor connectivity.

After habitat disturbance: Offsets and residual impacts

Apply the project's approved offset or environmental compensation requirements where impacts cannot be avoided or mitigated.

Ensure any offset or compensatory action protects or restores Mahogany Glider habitat within the species' known distribution and addresses habitat quality, connectivity and threat management.

Do not treat an offset as a substitute for retaining mature den trees, open woodland and functioning corridors within the project footprint.

Rehabilitation actions: Restore food and den resources

Rehabilitation should recreate connected, lowland open woodland with mature den trees and a year-round sequence of nectar, pollen and sap resources. Planting must not create a closed canopy or encourage rainforest replacement in habitat that requires an open structure.

Plant locally appropriate eucalypt, Corymbia, melaleuca and acacia species that provide nectar, pollen, sap, seed arils and shelter across different seasons.

Prioritise species recorded as Mahogany Glider food or den resources, including Corymbia clarksoniana, Corymbia intermedia, Eucalyptus platyphylla, Eucalyptus tereticornis, Lophostemon suaveolens, Melaleuca dealbata, Melaleuca leucadendra and Melaleuca viridiflora.

Include Acacia mangium, Acacia crassicarpa and Acacia flavescens where they are suitable to the local vegetation community and approved planting design, because their sap, arils or other plant resources are used by the species.

Retain and protect mature living trees and standing dead trees that can provide hollows as the restored vegetation develops.

Install appropriately designed den boxes in areas that lack suitable dens, using them as supplementary resources rather than as a replacement for mature hollow-bearing trees.

Design plantings to reconnect isolated patches and provide tall trees at corridor crossings where gliders need a complete glide and landing.

Recorded glide requirement: The species can cross gaps when trees on each side are tall enough for a complete glide and landing

Known den-tree height range: About 6.5 to 61.6 metres, with den entrances 7 to 33 metres above ground

  • Use local provenance plants suited to the site's soil, hydrology and approved regional ecosystem.
  • Do not plant dense rainforest species or allow woody weeds to close the open woodland structure required by the glider.

Rehabilitation actions: Reinstate habitat structure and manage threats

Retain or reinstate fallen timber and other natural shelter features where they do not create a fire or safety hazard.

Control woody weeds and other invasive plants that promote rainforest incursion, reduce grass cover or alter fuel loads and fire behaviour.

Develop a site-specific fire regime with land managers that maintains suitable open sclerophyll structure without exposing dens, young animals or restored plantings to unsafe fire.

Manage grazing so that understorey cover, plant composition and developing canopy are not degraded.

Use wildlife-friendly fencing, avoid barbed wire and inspect fences regularly for entangled gliders.

Reduce cat and dog access to restored and retained habitat.

Design roads, powerline easements and other linear infrastructure to maintain movement routes and reduce vehicle and infrastructure strike.

Rehabilitation actions: Monitoring and success measures

Inspect restored areas after planting, storms, fire and weed-control works, and replace failed plants where required.

Monitor plant survival, canopy structure, flowering and sap resources, den-box use, corridor continuity and signs of glider movement.

Use repeat spotlighting, camera traps and habitat assessments to test whether Mahogany Gliders are using restored corridors and retained habitat.

Measure progress against increased high-quality habitat, improved population trajectory, increased occupied area, maintained genetic diversity and restored connectivity.

Record whether landholders have adopted appropriate grazing and fire management and whether infrastructure maintenance measures are operating across transport and easement corridors.

Review rehabilitation methods with the Mahogany Glider Recovery Team or relevant regional recovery partners when monitoring shows that habitat structure, food supply or connectivity is not improving.

Recovery plan success period: Most success criteria are intended to be achieved or in progress within 10 years

Priority corridor target: Connectivity restored within 5 priority corridors

  • Set monitoring locations before rehabilitation begins so that pre-treatment and post-treatment results can be compared.
  • Keep monitoring records for the full period required by approvals, rehabilitation conditions or the recovery program.

Sources