Dermoptera

Colugos

(Cynocephalidae)

Class: Mammalia

Order: Dermoptera

Family: Cynocephalidae

Number of families: 1

Thumbnail description
Specialized herbivorous gliding mammals with a furred membrane extending around almost the entire margin of the body

Size
Cat-sized mammals with an overall length of approximately 30 in (75 cm) and a body weight of about 3 lb (1.35 kg)

Number of genera, species
1 genus; 2 species

Habitat
Evergreen tropical rainforest

Conservation status
Vulnerable: 1 species

Distribution
Southeast Asia

Resources

Beard, K. Christopher. "Phylogenetic Systematics of the Primatomorpha, with Special Reference to Dermoptera." In Mammal Phylogeny. Vol. 2, Placentals, edited by Frederick S. Szalay, Michael J. Novacek, and Malcolm C. McKenna. New York: Springer-Verlag, 1993.

Hayssen, Virginia D., Ari Van Tienhoven, and Ans Van Tienhoven. Asdell's Patterns of Mammalian Reproduction: A Compendium of Species-Specific Data. Ithaca, NY: Comstock Publishing Associates, Cornell University Press, 1993.

Lekagul, Boonsong, and Jeffrey A. McNeely. Mammals of Thailand. Bangkok: Sahakarnbhat Co., 1977.

Martin, Robert D. Primate Origins and Evolution: A Phylogenetic Reconstruction. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1990.

Medway, Lord. The Wild Mammals of Malaya and Singapore. 2nd ed. London: Oxford University Press, 1978.

Nowak, Ronald M., and John L. Paradiso. Walker's Mammals of the World. 4th ed. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1983

Stucky, R. K., and Malcolm C. McKenna. "Mammalia." In The Fossil Record II, edited by Michael J. Benton, 739–771. London: Chapman & Hall, 1993.

Aimi, M., and H. Inagaki. "Grooved Lower Incisors in Flying Lemurs." Journal of Mammalogy 69 (1988): 138–140.

Arnason, Ulfur, et al. "Mammalian Mitogenomic Relationships and the Root of the Eutherian Tree." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences U.S.A. 99 (2002): 8151–8156.

Beard, K. "Gliding Behaviour and Palaeoecology of the Alleged Primate Family Paromomyidae (Mammalia, Dermoptera)." Nature, London 345 (1990): 340–341.

Ducrocq, Stéphane, et al. "First Fossil Flying Lemur: A Dermopteran from the Late Eocene of Thailand." Palaeontology 35 (1992): 373–380.

Hamrick, Mark W., Burt A. Rosenman, and Jason A. Brush. "Phalangeal Morphology of the Paromomyidae (Primates, Plesiadapiformes): The Evidence for Gliding Behavior Reconsidered." American Journal of Physical Anthropology 109 (1999): 397–413.

Hunt, Robert M., and William W. Korth. "The Auditory Region of Dermoptera: Morphology and Function Relative to Other Living Mammals." Journal of Morphology 164 (1980): 167–211.

Kay, Richard F., Richard W. Thorington, and Peter Houde. "Eocene Plesiadapiform shows Affinities with Flying Lemurs, not Primates." Nature, London 345 (1990): 342–344.

Krause, David W. "Were Paromomyids Gliders? Maybe, Maybe Not." Journal of Human Evolution 21 (1991): 177–188.

Lim, Boo Liat "Observations on the Food Habits and Ecological Habitat of the Malaysian Flying Lemur." International Zoo Yearbook 7 (1967): 196–197.

MacPhee, Russell D. E., Matt Cartmill, and Kenneth D. Rose. "Craniodental Morphology and Relationships of the supposed Eocene Dermopteran Plagiomene (Mammalia)." Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 9 (1989): 329–349.

Martin, Robert D. "Some Relatives take a Dive." Nature, London 345 (1990): 291–292. ——. "Primate Origins: Plugging the Gaps." Nature, London 363 (1993): 223–234.

Murphy, William J., et al. "Resolution of the Early Placental Mammal Radiation using Bayesian Phylogenetics." Science 294 (December 14, 2001): 2348–2351.

Pirlot, P., and T. Kamiya. "Relative Size of Brain and Brain Components in Three Gliding Placentals (Dermoptera; Rodentia)." Canadian Journal of Zoology 60 (1982): 565–572.

Rose, Kenneth D., and Elwyn L. Simons. "Dental Function in the Plagiomenidae: Origin and Relationships of the Mammalian order Dermoptera." Contributions of the Museum of Palentology of the University of Michigan 24 (1977): 221–236.

Runestad, Jacqueline A., and Christopher B. Ruff. "Structural Adaptations for Gliding in Mammals with Implications for Locomotor Behavior in Paromomyids." American Journal of Physical Anthropology 98 (1995): 101–119.

Schmitz, Jürgen, Martina Ohme, Bambang Suryobroto, and Hans Zischler. "The Colugo (Cynocephalus variegatus, Dermoptera): The Primates' Gliding Sister?" Molecular Biology and Evolution 19 (2002): 2308–2312.

Stafford, B. J., and Frederick S. Szalay. "Craniodental Functional Morphology and Taxonomy of Dermopterans." Journal of Mammalogy 81 (2000): 360–385.

Szalay, Frederick S., and S. G. Lucas. "The postcranial Morphology of Paleocene Chriacus and Mixodectes and the Phylogenetic Relationships of Archontan Mammals." Bulletin of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science 7 (1996): 1–47.

Wharton, Charles H. "Notes on the Life History of the Flying Lemur." Journal of Mammalogy 31 (1950): 269–273.

Wible, John R. "Cranial Circulation and Relationships of the Colugo Cynocephalus (Dermoptera, Mammalia)." American Museum Novitates 3072 (1993): 1–27.

[Article by: Robert D. Martin, PhD]