Field Observations of the Feeding Behavior in the Japanese Giant Flying Squirrel, Petaurista leucogenys

Field observations were carried out on Petnurista bucogenys, a tree dwelling glider, together with an analysis of stomach contents. The animal seldom perched on low branches to feed, and hardly sat on twigs of lcm and less in diameter or on branches with steep inclinations. In addition, the animal always fed at a sitting posture and put the hindpaws at a right angle to the branch. In spite of restrictions on feeding positions and feeding postures, the animal was able to get food at a distance by applying feeding techniques such as gnawing off or bending of branches. Feeding habits of the animal are characterized by the follwing facts: i. e. lack of storing habit, repeated visits to the same feeding site, infrequent shifts during a feeding bout, and long feeding bout on a tree together with the fact that ingested food remained in the stomach for a long time. The facts mentioned above indicated that the feeding habits of this animal are adapted for feeding on abundant items on a tree, particularly on fibrous ones such as leaves