The Daintree River ringtail possum (''Pseudochirulus cinereus''), also known as the cinereus ringtail possum, is a species of possum found in northeastern

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. It was long believed to be the same as the

Herbert River ringtail possum The Herbert River ringtail possum (''Pseudochirulus herbertensis'') is a species of possum found in northeastern Queensland, Australia. It is a dark brown to black species, sometimes with a white belly. The Herbert River ringtail possum was lon ...

(''P. herbertensis''), but has recently been separated. The two species differ considerably in appearance. The Daintree River ringtail possum is a cinnamon or brown colour, and has been said, like the

lemuroid ringtail possum The lemuroid ringtail possum (''Hemibelideus lemuroides''), also known as the lemur-like ringtail possum or the brushy-tailed ringtail, is a truly singular member of the ringtail possum group. It was once thought that they were gliding possums ( ...

(''Hemibelideus lemuroides''), to resemble a

lemur Lemurs ( ) (from Latin ''lemures'' – ghosts or spirits) are Strepsirrhini, wet-nosed primates of the Superfamily (biology), superfamily Lemuroidea (), divided into 8 Family (biology), families and consisting of 15 genera and around 100 exist ...

. It is found in montane tropical

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

in three separate populations just north of

Cairns Cairns (, ) is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. The population in June 2019 was 153,952, having grown on average 1.02% annually over the preceding five years. The city is the 5th-most-p ...

: on

Carbine Tableland The Mount Carbine Tableland is a plateau in Far North Queensland, Australia. Part of the Great Dividing Range, it lies in the Shire of Mareeba 15 km west of Mossman, and 1,460 km north-west of Brisbane, reaching an altitude of 1,38 ...

Mount Windsor Tableland Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

and

Thornton Peak Thornton Peak is a prominent mountain that rises above the Daintree Rainforest to a height of 1374 m. The mountain is located about 80 km northwest of Cairns within the catchment of the Daintree River. It is Queensland's fourth highe ...

massif.

References

Possums Mammals of Queensland Mammals described in 1945 {{Diprotodont-stub