Colugo (flying lemur): the most accomplished and cutest mammalian glider
It seems like us mammals were never meant to fly. Sure, bats can fly, but that's kind of it. Even so, some mammals have learned alternative means of skipping at an altitude: gliding (feather-tailed possums, sifaka) or parachuting (cats). Yes, cats parachute, but enough of them. Chances have it you've seen on average 17 cats already since morning. Today's post is about a gliding mammal that's in much more need of attention: the adorable colugos.
Tibi Puiu by Tibi Puiu March 27, 2015
Source: Facebook Natural Selection
It seems like us mammals were never meant to fly. Sure, bats can fly, but that’s kind of it. Even so, some mammals have learned alternative means of skipping at an altitude: gliding (feather-tailed possums, sifaka) or parachuting (cats). Yes, cats parachute, but enough of them. Chances have it you’ve seen on average 17 cats already since morning. Today’s post is about a gliding mammal that’s in much more need of attention: the adorable colugos.
Also called a flying lemur, despite it’s not a lemur, nor can it fly. The colugo’s distinguishing hallmark is a gliding membrane (patagium) surrounding almost the entire body margin. This stretches from its face to the tips of its digits all the way back to its tail, even between fingers and toes (hence the name ‘mitten-gliders’). “Geometrically, it has the greatest surface area that you can have between those limbs without actually evolving an entire wing like bats did,” said conservation biologist Jan Janecka of Duquesne University.
More:
https://www.zmescience.com/science/biology/colugo-flying-lemur-0423423/
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