Cuscus Explained

Cuscus (or) is the common name generally given to the species within the four genera of Australasian possum^[1] of the family Phalangeridae with the most tropical distribution:

• Ailurops
• Phalanger
• Spilocuscus
• Strigocuscus

The name comes from the word kusu or kuso in some local related languages spoken in the Maluku Islands like Bacan and Ambonese Malay,^[2] it is also applied in parts of Indonesia to the Sunda slow loris, where people do not distinguish this from the "kuskus" possums. Note however, that the loris, being a primate, is unrelated to the other cuscus species. Cuscus are marsupials, even though they have some appearances, traits and attributes like those of lemurs of Madagascar, which are prosimians,^[3] due to convergent evolution.

See also

• Reduplication

Further reads

• New Species of Cuscus. N.p., n.p, 1900.
• Image, Cool. Cuscus Journal: 150 Page Lined Notebook/Diary. N.p., CreateSpace Publishing Platform, 2016.
• Salas, Leonardo A.. Comparative Ecology and Behavior of the Mountain Cuscus (Phalanger Carmelitae), Silky Cuscus (Phalanger Sericeus) and Coppery Ringtail (Pseudochirops Cupreus) at Mt. Stolle, Papua New Guinea. N.p., University of Massachusetts at Amherst, 2002.
• Nowak, Ronald M.. Walker's Marsupials of the World. United States, Johns Hopkins University Press, 2005.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Cuscus marsupial. 2021-10-01. Encyclopedia Britannica. en.
2. See:
   • Flannery, Tim (1995). Mammals of The South West Pacific and Moluccan Islands. Sydney: Australian Museum.
   • van der Zon, A.P.M (1979). Mamalia of Indonesia. UNDP-FAO Park Development Project.
3. Web site: 2014-08-21. Common spotted cuscus a marsupial furball. 2021-10-01. Australian Geographic. en-AU.