Sulawesi Bear Cuscus
Ailurops ursinus (Temminck, 1824)
Also calledBarenkuskus (deu) · Beerkoeskoes (nld) · Bjørnekuskus (nob) · Bärenkuskus (deu) · Cusco orsino di Sulawesi (ita) · Cuscus-Urso (por) · Cuscús Ursino de Célebes (spa) · Eigentlicher Bärenkuskus (deu) · Grand couscous de Célèbes (fra) · Kuskus-beruang Sulawesi (ind) · Phalanger ursin (fra) · Sulavesi Ayıcık Kuskus (tur) · Sulawesi-Bärenkuskus (deu) · karhukuskus (fin)
First described in: Monogr. Mamm. vol.1 p.10
The Sulawesi bear cuscus, also known as the Sulawesi bear phalanger (Ailurops ursinus), is a species of arboreal marsupial in the family Phalangeridae that is endemic to Sulawesi and nearby islands in Indonesia. It lives in tropical moist lowland forest at elevations up to 600 m (2,000 ft) and is diurnal, folivorous and often found in pairs. A. ursinus is threatened by hunting, collection for the pet trade and deforestation.
One specimen was observed adopting a raised posture while making short, harsh chattering and clicking sounds.
Descriptions from checklists and floras indexed by GBIF
child_taxa
Subspecies:: Subspecies Ailurops ursinus subsp. ursinus Temminck 1824 Subspecies Ailurops ursinus subsp. flavissimus Feiler 1977 Subspecies Ailurops ursinus subsp. furvus Miller and Hollister 1922 Subspecies Ailurops ursinus subsp. togianus Tate 1945
Order Diprotodontia
discussion
Discussion: Formerly included in Phalanger. May be a species complex.
Order Diprotodontia
distribution
Distribution: Sulawesi, Peleng Isl, Muna and Butung Isls, Togian Isls.
Order Diprotodontia
materials_examined
Type Locality: Indonesia, Sulawesi, Sulawesi Utara, Minahasa, Manado.
Order Diprotodontia
From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), quoted section by section
What it does
Bear cuscuses can feed on the young leaves of up to 31 different species of plants varying from trees, lianas, and mistletoes. Feeding only amounts to about 5% of their daily activity, compared to about 63% spent on resting.
In the stacks
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Every page naming Ailurops ursinus in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
From the GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and occurrence records (GBIF.org), with Wikipedia and the Source Library. GBIF species 5219990.