 | Posted by: | sean | | Subject: | really really neat! | | When: | 5:33 AM, 21 Jan 2001 | | IP: | 63.231.79.223 |
So we all know they have prehensile tails, and in the wild use their tails to transport branches etc. to their nests for bedding. I never thought I would get a chance to see this! The other day, Juno took apart a couple of my plants, defoliated them almost completely in a few places. I wondered if it was diet, but since I'm feeding the modified BML, I thought perhaps I wasn't paying enough attention to her (what, 3 hours at least, not to mention when I get up at night??). It turns out it was none of these. I went to bed a little while ago, and heard her rustling around in her jungle, not the usual jumping and climbing but some serious rustling and running around. Then I heard her, plus rustling, run across a picture frame above my bed; in the dim light I could see she was somehow carrying part of a vine, leaves and all. I waited for a bit, hoping she'd do it again...and soon enough, she pounced on her eucalyptus tree. I turned on a low light, and got to watch her chew off a new shoot (arg! as if that tree isn't hurting enough already!), *wrap it up in her tail*, and run across her bamboo scaffold (it's hanging from the ceiling all across one side of my room) to her nestbox, where she pulled the shoot, leaves and all, inside the box (still my speaker, still can't use it during the day =P), rustled around, and then ran back for another!
If I can catch her in the act with a camera, I'll post a picture. This is the second coolest thing I've seen her do...the first was her 10 foot leap across my room =)...
Now I just have to hope the eucalyptus tree grows faster than she wants to customize her nest =)
|
| Posted by: | Debbie, delliott@tulane.edu | | Subject: | Way cool | | When: | 7:35 AM, 21 Jan 2001 | | IP: | 216.227.111.97 |
Isn't it fantastic that you caught such a secret! I would love to see your jungle. It will be quite some time before I have the time to devote to my gliders to that degree. But I wish I could! You have rekindled my quest for eucalyptus...
| Posted by: | Star, teverett@kent.edu | | Subject: | building nests | | When: | 11:16 AM, 21 Jan 2001 | | IP: | 209.81.169.166 |
One of my boys does this also. It is very cute. They have little nests all over their room. Unfortunately all of my plants are suffering also.
| Posted by: | Barb, blooprints@yahoo.com | | Subject: | nests | | When: | 11:52 AM, 21 Jan 2001 | | IP: | 208.130.245.56 |
My gliders use the grape stems for nest building. Gliders do wrap their tails around things to carry objects back to nest build: Mine do it all the time....However, let me correct you in that their tails are NOT prehensile.
| Posted by: | Amy, a_m_kuck@hotmail.com | | Subject: | nests | | When: | 9:27 PM, 21 Jan 2001 | | IP: | 4.4.75.81 |
I would love to be able to proof my room so my glider can run free at night while I sleep. Any suggestions?? Oh yeah, is a wire mesh cage with that has hole spacings 1" x 1" not suitable for a glider?????
| Posted by: | Bourbon | | Subject: | it is not advisable | | When: | 12:20 AM, 22 Jan 2001 | | IP: | 216.248.35.185 |
Maybe Karen will post her story or at least a referance to it. Many people in the past have allowed their glider to run free unsupervised at night. what happens MOST of the time, is that the gliders end up either dead or injured, In hopes that you all don't have to learn the hard way PLEASE, PLEASE, heed this warning. The real stories page is packed with unsupervised paytime, and bed buddies that have not made it. A glider can get injured and you not even know it. And it only takes once for death to befall them. Karen Stood up and made a very painful post that she didn't heed those warnings, hopefully to save another glider. Please don't let Charlie's death be in Vain, nor his story.
| Posted by: | KarenE, KarenElfrank@aol.com | | Subject: | Charlie, I'm So Sorry | | When: | 10:50 PM, 21 Jan 2001 | | IP: | 152.163.204.15 |
I was reading the post thinking how cute it is to watch my "family" tear up paper or anything else to carry with their tail to the nest when to my horror I realized this glider is probably unsupervised at night.
I rememberr how much fun it was to watch Charlie play around the room - in and out of absolutely everything - and then find him curled in my neck sound asleep every morning .... except one.
That particular morning he wasn't curled in my neck and I found him underneath me. It was apparent that there had been absolutely no struggle ... which made my grief even worse.
For those who have gliders so totally bonded with them, the sad thing is Charlie didn't even realize he was in danger ... all he knew was that he was with the one "person" he trusted most.
Your glider will not be happy at first, but for his safety and your peace of mind, please make sure that he is securely locked in his cage before you go to sleep. You can put plenty of thinkg in his cage for him to carry in his tail ... lighweight string is good when cut into small pieces ... cut up scrap pieces of material ... newspaper, etc. etc.
I don't mean to sound harsh ... I just don't want anything to happen to your glider. It is something you don't get over very quickly ... especially when it can be so easily avoided.
| Posted by: | sean | | Subject: | yipe. | | When: | 11:59 PM, 21 Jan 2001 | | IP: | 63.231.79.223 |
i'm really sorry to hear about your loss, and i understand your concern. i've been trying to get juno sleeping in her new nestbox i made her, so i can keep a closer eye on her, and i've been looking at large caging methods (netting, etc.) to keep her to one side of the room. i've pored over the various anecdotes and warnings, and glider-proofed my room--nothing poisonous, sharp, sticky, pinching, electrical (i've taped over every outlet i don't use), unstable, or nestworthy other than her speaker and her new nestbox. she can't get under the door or in the closet, or behind bookcases, there's no space in the bookcase for her to nest or get stuck, the standing lamps are actually unplugged (i don't use them because of her), there's nothing breakable where she can reach it, no strings for her to get tangled in, chains to get caught in, or sharp things for her to land on. she can't reach the ceiling fan, and the fountain is close to the ground and covered at night. i really have tried to make the entire room as much a safe "cage" as possible; she makes it easier by keeping to the heights, never on the floor. i'll let you know how the netting works. thanks for the warning,
sean
| Posted by: | sean | | Subject: | incidentally... | | When: | 12:26 AM, 22 Jan 2001 | | IP: | 63.231.79.223 |
all the lights in my room are vented reflector, ceramic fixture full spectrum lights, hooked to a 7am-10pm timer...they're always cool by the time juno comes out, and they turn on after natural light is bright enough for her to return to her nest box. i don't use any lamp or light with a bulb in a position where she could walk on it, and i usually sleep rather light; i also discourage her from being near or on my bed, to the point of picking her up if she's nearby and taking her to the other side of the room.
|
|
Home
Glider Gossip
Gliderpedia
Journals
Resources