NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Southern Common Cuscus
Phalanger mimicus Thomas, 1922
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
A juvenile Southern Brown Cuscus in the rainforest of Lockhart River, Cape York Peninsula. © CNZdenek & AJBurnett
Czdenek · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The southern common cuscus (Phalanger mimicus), also known as Australian cuscus, gray phalanger, and to-ili, is an arboreal marsupial endemic to Australia (Cape York), southern New Guinea and possibly the Aru Islands. Until recently, it was considered conspecific with P. intercastellanus, and before that also with P. orientalis.
Wikipedia contributors, Southern common cuscus; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T09:48:44.581589+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Phalanger mimicus Thomas, 1922
- Name authority
- Thomas, 1922
- Common name
- Southern Common Cuscus
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Diprotodontia
- Family
- Phalangeridae
- Genus
- Phalanger
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassMetatheria Huxley, 1880
- orderDiprotodontia Owen, 1866
- suborderPhalangeriformes Szalay in Archer, 1982
- superfamilyPhalangeroidea Thomas, 1888
- familyPhalangeridae Thomas, 1888
- subfamilyPhalangerinae Thomas, 1888
- genusPhalanger Storr, 1780
- speciesPhalanger mimicus Thomas, 1922
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Phalanger. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Moluccan CuscusPhalanger ornatus (Gray, 1860) | PhalangeridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Obi CuscusPhalanger rothschildi Thomas, 1898 | PhalangeridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Silky CuscusPhalanger sericeus Thomas, 1907 | PhalangeridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Gebe CuscusPhalanger alexandrae Flannery & Boeadi, 1995 | PhalangeridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Mountain CuscusPhalanger carmelitae Thomas, 1898 | PhalangeridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Ground CuscusPhalanger gymnotis Peters & Doria, 1875 | PhalangeridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Eastern Common CuscusPhalanger intercastellanus Thomas, 1895 | PhalangeridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Telefomin CuscusPhalanger matanim Flannery, 1987 | PhalangeridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Northern Common CuscusPhalanger orientalis (Pallas, 1766) | PhalangeridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Banggai CuscusPhalanger pelengensis Tate, 1945 | PhalangeridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Stein's CuscusPhalanger vestitus (A. Milne-Edwards, 1877) | PhalangeridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Phalanger orientalis peninsulae Tate, 1945 Tate, 1945 | synonym |
| Phalanger mimicus mimicus Thomas, 1922 Thomas, 1922 | synonym |
| Phalanger mimicus peninsulae Tate, 1945 Tate, 1945 | synonym |
| Phalanger orientalis mimicus Thomas, 1922 Thomas, 1922 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=709418 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:4FR5X. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.