It was initially described as a subspecies of
Petauroides volans, which alongside
Petauroides minor formerly comprised a single species known simply as the
greater glider. It was shortly after synonymized with
P. v. minor. However, in 2012 and 2015, several field guides written by Colin Groves and/or Stephen Jackson listed the greater glider as being split into three species, which was confirmed by a 2020 analysis, which found significant genetic and morphological differences between the three species. The
American Society of Mammalogists now considers it a distinct species. There is some evidence of hybridization between this species and
P. minor near the northern edge of its range. == Distribution ==