Scientific name:
Phalanger

Natural spread:
Philipinen, New Guinea

to the biggest Kletterbeutlern is fitting the Kuskuse. its head-torso-length is between 27 and 65 cm. With the round head, the blunt muzzle and the small, rounded off ears, they remind of some semi-monkeys. Big, prominent night-animal-eyes still reinforce this impression. With the mountaineering, they put the 1. and 2. Fingers the 3 opposite others and forms a gripping-hand, that is fortified with strong claws, like the koala. The big-toe lets itself compare the remaining toes. So, also the feet are very well suitable for the mountaineering. As these Kletterbeutler trained a powerful gripping-tail further adaptation at the life in the branches. it is only partially hairy; its end always is bare.

The fur is very dense and fleecy soft. its coloring can be very different with the Kuskusen.

Way of life Kuskuse are night-animals. they live mainly from leaves, however, occasionally also fruits, insects, eggs and squabs eat. they have only few enemies; besides the natives, above all pythons follow them.

Spread The Kuskuse are widespread over the whole Australian island-world. they penetrate from all marsupials on the farthest northward and west before. its spread-area stretches the Bismarck-archipelago, New Guinea, over Australia's cape-York-peninsula, the Salomonen, for itself the Molukken, Celebes, Timor and the neighboring small islands.

Types This happens gray Kuskus (Phalanger orientalis) in the whole spread-area of the Kuskuse, and also the Tüpfelkuskus (Phalanger maculatus) is widespread, in Australia, both types are however rare, in New Guinea however still frequent. One finds the Gleichfarbenkuskus (Phalanger gymnotis) only on New Guinea and some islands on the other hand. Also there lives in middle until high mountain-situations of the Seidenkuskus (Phalanger vestitus).

The smallest and the biggest animal of the type, whom Celebeskuskus (Phalanger celebensis), with approximately 30 cm and the Bärenkuskus (Phalanger ursinus) with 65 cm of head-torso-length, live in, Celebes and neighboring islands.