Whenever we imagine living beings that can fly, we can only think of birds. But what you don’t know is that here are group of fascinating animals that can glide without wings. These creatures can move through air easily, because of their body structure.  

Here are 7 animals that can glide without wings: 

Flying Squirrel 

These tiny mammals have a skin called patagium which covers their necks till the tail, thus enabling these small creatures to fly gracefully from tree to tree during the night. This impressive skill assists them to move around their vulnerable forest habitats in search of food while avoiding danger. 

Sugar Glider 

They are small and cute marsupials coming from Australia and New Guinea region. Sugar gliders possess a patagium, which is similar to that of a flying squirrel and in fact can glide up to 45 meters! This facet helps them move from tree to another in the search for nectar, fruits, and insects. 

Colugo (Flying Lemur) 

The flying lemur, also known as colugo, is one astonishing and skilled glider. It possesses a great patagium between its limb and tail and thus it has a large surface area to fly in the large tropical rain forest of Southeast Asia. Its flying potential is also limited to about 330 feet, which is used for finding food and to escape from predators. 

The Flying Fish 

They have a small trick or should we say, an ability to raise their tiny fin. With their ears longer than their body, they unfurl these enlarged pectoral fins and maintain a stretch above water to move great distances at times reaching 190 meters. This ability assists them in escaping from predators and moving to new food sources.

Draco Lizard 

This uncommon chameleon has a membrane stretched between its ribs resembling a flying dragon. This enables the lizard to move from one tree to the other in its natural habitat, Southeast Asia. The Draco lizard can move along its home which are the trees, without coming across predators. 

Spiny Leaf Insect 

The spiny insect has a body and wings that look like a leaf, and it is proved that it can also glide. When threatened, it jumps and flies with its body structure to control its flight. It is also good at gliding because it can fly to avoid its predators and access different parts of the forest. 

African Flying Frog 

Their feet are webbed like parachutes making the African flying frog to start flying from one tree to the other. Although these acts mainly involve the powerful legs which enable jumping the webbed feet enables gliding. This creature is a swift traveler across the regions of West. 

These animals illustrate just how varied gliding can be  a form of adaptive evolution. All these creatures demonstrate a special feature that enables them to live within certain conditions, thus adding more appeal to the world of gliding!