There has been a lot of talk and
questions about the North American Virginia Opossum in my world lately. It
always amazes me how little the average public knows about these animals.
My hope is to expand your Opossum mind. Please: Read, Stay Open
Minded, Think, and Share.
COMMON OPOSSUM MYTHS AND
PHRASES:
"Eww it's a big rat!"
"They carry disease."
"They are worthless!"
"They kill my chickens and
attack my pets!"
"They're mean!"
I could go on and on with the
horrible things I have heard and read about Opossums. I'll get back to
debunking these myths later on. Let me start by telling you all about this
fantastic Mammal!
North American Virginia Opossum
FACTS:
These mammals are found all over
North America.
They are Marsupials (pouched
animals) and the only Marsupials we have in North America.
Opossums have a Prehensil tail.
This hairless tail is used to grip onto mom as a baby and tree branches later
in life when foraging for food.
N.A. Virginia Opossums have a
lifespan of about 2 years in the wild and up to 3 years in captivity.
In California and some other
states they are a Protected Species (they should be everywhere).
Opossums are healthy for our
ecosystems.
Opossums are omnivores. They eat
fruit, snail, slugs, some insects, small rodents and lizards, and the
occassional egg. They are scavengers not hunters.
Female Opossums have a pouch,
the males do not. They have 13 nipples in their pouch and can give birth to
1-50 babies but only the first 13 to crawl into their moms pouch and latch on
have a chance of survival. The average litter that survives is
about 3-6 babies.
Opossums have a great sense of
smell but poor eyesight.
Opossums are Nocturnal, coming
out in the night and sleeping by day.
Opossums are great climbers and
will climb trees to get fruit and food, however they choose to sleep on the
ground in holes, dense bushes, or burrows they find.
Opossums are excellent for
keeping a healthy ecosystem.
Now lets continue with facts and
debunk some common Opossum myths.
While opossums do have a
"rat-like" tail they are NOT rats and they are NOT rodents. They are
Marsupials.
They do not hang by their tails
from trees and attack or sleep that way (only in cartoons) Opossums
can NOT carry rabies or other diseases because they have one of the lowest
body temperatures of any mammal. The worst thing they might have is fleas
(and lets be honest everyone has fleas at some point).
They are not worthless. Opossums
clean up rotting fruit, keep pest species like snails under control, and play a
valuable role in every ecosystem, even in the city.
These next two deserve an entire
section to themselves: "They kill my chickens and attack my pets!"
"They're mean!". Let
us take a moment for an important Opossum Lesson:
Opossums are scared of
everything! They are not very fast and can often get cornered by a person, dog,
or other animal. The first thing they do it sit still thinking "maybe
it won't see me", when that doesn't work they open their mouth to show you
all 50 of their sharp pointy teeth (great for cracking nuts and snail
shells) they hope that when their attacker sees their impressive teeth the
attacker will leave them alone. When this doesn't work they puff up to look big
and hiss (sounds like a cat hissing), hoping with all their might to be left
alone.
THEY ARE BLUFFING!
Most people have heard of the
term "playing opossum" or seen it on a cartoon. The fact of the
matter is they are not pretending. When all of their bluff tactics don't work,
some Opossums get so freaked out that they faint! They actually pass out from
fear. When this happens nature kicks in and sets off a scent gland that
releases a horrible odor (to make them smell dead). Smelling dead is good
because if you are going to be helplessly passed out for a few hours you don't
want a passing Mountain Lion or other carnivore to eat you. Since Carnivores
only like fresh meat they pass the stinky Opossums by. A great defense for a
scared animal. In the city people see a "dead" Opossum and toss them
in their dumpsters only to be surprised when they hear it moving around later
in the night.
Opossums only bite if cornered
and something touches them, bites at them, or physically attacks them.
They have no other choice (I would bite too). They do NOT chase people or pets
or livestock. A lot of times people say "but I saw it chasing..."
what they saw was a terrified Opossum trying to escape, and because they are
slower, their pursuer usually gets ahead of them making it look like they are
the one's chasing.
Most living things on the planet
like eggs, Opossums are no exception. They are tasty, easy to eat, and can't
fight back. I want to really stress that Opossums are scavengers, NOT hunters.
If you have chicken coops lock your chickens up at night and all will be well.
The only conflict here is when Chicken owners do not have properly protected
coops (standard chicken wire works), or when they don't lock them up at night.
If You Do Not Want Opossums To
Affect You:
Keep Your garage and sheds
closed.
Keep all your pets in at night (this
is a must for their safety from all nocturnal wildlife)
If you have chickens, have their
coops properly wired and lock them in at dusk for the night.
Keep all your trash cans sealed,
properly recycle (Opossums and other small animals get heads caught in yogurt
containers and other plastic waste).
Do Not Feed Your Pets Outside!
(this protects them and ALL wildlife)
You Do Not Have To
"Like" All Wildlife. Please Respect That ALL Wildlife Is Important!
Now if all you do is read this
far and stop, I'll be ok with that. However, if you care to keep reading let me
tell you more about one of my favorite animals and what happens to them.
Some Mexicans and other cultures
believe that eating Opossum can cure illness and disease. This is NOT true. I
had a long conversation with my friend Reyes about this but there was no
convincing him to not eat them. In the end I pointed out that they are
protected in California and killing them was illegal.
On the subject of food; Yes
people still eat Opossums. When I was 17 I visited my grandmother in Alabama
and was offered Opossum stew at a friends house. I declined. As with any
scavenger animal, their meat is not the healthiest for you. (neither is squirrel,
a true rodent, but thats another blog) If you like meat, I reccomend
healthy farmed meat that comes from animals whose diets are known.
If you go to ebay and type in a
search "Opossum" like I did one year (I was looking for a Christmas
ornament) it will amaze you how many hats, scarves, body parts, and
stuffed Opossums are up for auction. Their body parts are NOT Lucky, Have NO
magic health benefits, and I for one do not find Opossum Head hats funny or
stylish.
Opossums are not the smartest of
mammals, they are one of the most ancient, and the slowest to change and
evolve. Dogs, cars, and people taking shots at them for fun, decrease their
numbers at a rapid rate every year. Opossums live their short lives running on
instinct, scavenging for food, and hiding from all the "scary" things
they encounter.
As a rehabilitator. I
occasionally get babies that need help. The goal is to rescue, raise, then
release back into their natural environment. I love them. Because they have
such bad short term memory you can hold, cuddle and play with them but after a
couple of days with no human contact they completely forget you and revert back
to "fear humans" instinct. This makes them easy to raise and release
successfully.
YOU CAN HELP!
If you don't like them, I'll repeat: Keep Your garage and sheds closed. Keep
all your pets in at night (this is a must for their safety from all
nocturnal wildlife), If you have chickens, have their coops properly
wired and lock them in at dusk for the night. Keep all your trash cans sealed,
properly recycle (Opossums and other small animals get heads caught
in yogurt containers and other plastic waste). Do Not Feed Your Pets
Outside! (this protects them ans ALL wildlife).
If You WantTo Help:
Do all of the above. Do Not
Feed Them. Know Opossum Rescues near you in case you see one in distress.
Educate others. Learn More! If
You Have More Questions, Please Ask!
I have not even come close to
sharing everything Awesome About Opossums! I will however, leave you with the
story of Little and Lucky. This is always on the 'Rebecca' page so many may
have already read it.
Remember All Wildlife Is
Important! Remember Wildlife, Rebecca
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