It looks like a cross between a koala and a possum – and it’s in big trouble, Australian conservationists say

There is “damning evidence” of logging occurring close to endangered greater glider populations , conservationists say as they call on the Queensland government to urgently act on a promise to create a park to protect the species.

Volunteers used drones in July to film logging in St Mary state forest near Maryborough, about three km from where gliders had been seen.

It came after the Miles government in June promised to turn 50,000–60,000 hectares of “high-value ecosystems” in the region into a Greater Glider Forest park.

The commitment was detailed in the terms of reference for a new timber industry framework , but it did not include maps of the area that would be protected.

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Nicky Moffat, a campaigner with the Queensland Conservation Council, said the government should act urgently to stop logging in the area.

“These areas actually have to come off the logging schedules. You can’t log them and then put them in a conservation park,” she said.

Moffat said the greater gliders were “captivating” and considered a “keystone species” – meaning when gliders were thriving, it was considered an indicator of a healthy ecosystem.

“It’s the biggest gliding possum in the world. It’s up to a metre long … It’s got this massive floppy tail. It’s got big floppy ears. It looks like a cross between a koala and a possum,” she said.

Moffat said St Mary state forest was a priority area for the park, particularly given volunteers spotted seven greater gliders within the forest on a single night.

Related: ‘Cutest animal in Australia’: keeping watch over greater gliders in a forest targeted for logging

The council is calling for protection of all glider habitat on state-owned land and a commitment to fund new national parks and protected areas dedicated to the species’ recovery.

While not responding directly to the claims, a Queensland government spokesperson said the commitment to establish a greater glider park was based on a conservation council proposal and experts were identifying the highest priority habitat for protection.

“This is a huge contribution to helping to save greater gliders and so many other species in these areas,” they said. “That’s in addition to the 20,000 hectares of state forest in [south-east Queensland] that is in the process of being dedicated as national and conservation park.”

Announcing the greater glider forest park in June, the premier, Steven Miles, said Queensland’s timber industry was “the backbone of the housing and building sectors and that he was “doing what matters to support timber workers and the industry to continue building our state, while also increasing our protected area estate”.

Related: Conservationist fears NSW logging will drive frog named after him to extinction

The national greater glider population is estimated to have halved in little more than 20 years, and it was listed under national environmental laws as endangered in 2022. It was particularly affected by the catastrophic black summer bushfires of 2019-20. The species is the largest gliding possum in eastern Australia.

Matt Cecil, a project manager with the Wildlife Preservation Society of Queensland, said greater gliders “don’t cope well with habitat disturbances like human-caused logging”.

“They are not inclined to travel far across open ground to move between trees. They require connected, mature eucalypt forest with a high proportion of large tree hollows, and feed almost exclusively on eucalypt leaves.”