Family ACROBATIDAE

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Introduction

Acrobates and the related non-volant genus Distoechurus were previously placed in the Burramyidae (for example, Kirsch & Calaby 1977). As a result of morphological studies (Aplin & Archer 1987) and DNA hybridisation studies (Edwards & Westerman 1995; Kirsch et al. 1997), they are now placed in a separate family, the Acrobatidae (Aplin 1987). Acrobates has a narrow patagial fold between fore- and hind limbs and lateral fringes of stiff hair on the tail as adaptations for gliding, apparently convergent on similar adaptations seen in the Petauridae. The second genus in the family, Distoechurus, found only in New Guinea, has the fringed tail, but lacks the patagium. The material presented in this chapter is a revised version of that for Acrobates presented by G.M. McKay in the First Edition of the Zological Catalogue.

General References

Aplin, K.P. & Archer, M. 1987. Recent advances in marsupial systematics with a new syncretic classification. pp. xv-lxxii in Archer, M. (ed.). Possums and Opossums: studies in evolution. Sydney : Surrey Beatty & Sons with the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales 2 vols lxxii 788 pp.

Aplin, K.P. in Aplin, K.P. & Archer, M. 1987. Acrobatidae. xxii in Archer, M. (ed.). Possums and Opossums: studies in evolution. Sydney : Surrey Beatty & Sons with the Royal Zoological Society of New South Wales 2 vols lxxii 788 pp.

Edwards, D. & Westerman, M. 1995. The molecular relationships of possum and glider families as revealed by DNA-DNA hybridisations. Australian Journal of Zoology 43: 231-240 [publication date established from Duncan, F.M. 1937. On the dates of publication of the Society's 'Proceedings', 1859–1926. With an appendix containing the dates of publication of 'Proceedings', 1830–1858, compiled by the late F.H. Waterhouse, and of the 'Transactions', 1853–1869, by the late Henry Peavot, originally published in P.Z.S. 1893, 1913. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 107: 71–84]

Kirsch, J.A.W., Lapointe, F-J. & Springer, M.S. 1997. DNA-hybridisation studies of marsupials and their implications for metatherian classification. Australian Journal of Zoology 45: 211-280

Kirsch, J.A.W. & Calaby, J.H. 1977. The species of living marsupials: an annotated list. pp. 9-26 in Stonehouse, B. & Gilmore, D. (eds). The Biology of Marsupials. Baltimore : University Park Press.

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