Possums along with kangaroos and koalas are iconic Australian fauna. Another Aussie icon, Dame Edna Everage, fondly used the term “Hello possums!” in her stage and TV shows.
Australians have always lived alongside these small nocturnal marsupials benefiting from their silky smooth fur and leather. In 1837 possums were introduced into New Zealand to establish a fur trade. Unfortunately, with no predators and plenty of edible vegetation, possums have become such a problem in New Zealand that The National Possum Control Agencies was created in the early 1990s to control the problem.
The two most widespread possum species in Australia:
Of the 23 possum species known in Australia, there are two most likely to be thumping across your roof or growling in the darkness at night:
The Common Brushtail Possum
(Trichosurus vulpecular, from Greek and Latin, which means “furry tailed little fox”) is a nocturnal, semi-tree dwelling marsupial in the Phalangeridae family. It is indigenous to Australia and is the size of a domestic cat and the second biggest possum in Australia. It is an introduced species in New Zealand.
The Brushtail Possum has a pointed face and pink nose, with long oval ears and bushy black tail. In Tasmania, there are three colour variations: silver grey, black and gold. Possums which inhabit denser, wetter forests tend to be darker in colour.
The Common Ringtail Possum
(Pseudocheirus peregrinus, from Greek and Latin, which means “false hand pilgrim”) is an Australian marsupial. It lives in various habitats and eats a diversity of plants, flowers and fruits. The Ringtail Possum does not inhabit New Zealand.
The Common Ringtail Possum is the size of a small cat and mainly grey with white fur on the tip of its lengthy prehensile tail, behind its eyes and on its belly. It has orange-brown tinges on its tail and limbs. It can be coloured grey to dark grey and have red or orange tinged legs and belly. The underneath of its often coiled tail is naked but furry on top.
A female possum is called a “Jill,” a male one is called a “Jack,” while young ones are called “Joeys”. A group of these creatures is called a passel.
Possum population control
Despite natural possum population control in Australia (feral animals, dingoes, bush fires and less abundant vegetation), Common Ringtail Possums can be found all along the East of Australia and SW Western Australia, and Common Brushtail Possums flourish throughout mainland Australia, Tasmania and Kangaroo Island.
While legislative possum control is permitted in Tasmania to protect crops and for commercial trade in meat and skins, strict regulations govern moving and trapping possums in the rest of the country.
So, for many Australians these days, possums are not simply cute, furry creatures seen ambling across overhead branches at dusk, but also frustratingly destructive pests which have moved into our backyards, homes and sheds to eat our prized garden produce and leave our verandas smelling from their urination and droppings.
Top 10 Facts About Possums
Fact 1: Diet
Possums are mainly herbivores (plant eaters), favouring eucalyptus and other leaves, ferns, buds, flowers and fruits. Brushtail Possums are known to be tolerant of many plant toxins and will eat trees that other animals find poisonous. Possums will also eat insects, moths, grubs, snails, birds’ eggs and baby birds. They particularly like young new plant shoots and unfortunately are drawn to domestic gardens. Here they will eat everything from roses to rock melons, camellias to carrots, magnolias to mangoes, wisteria to wattle, and can decimate a veggie garden in no time.
Other food which we may grow for ourselves that possums love includes:
Fruits: Apples, pears, grapes and bananas.
Vegetables: corn, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers and broccoli
Native species: Many of the Acacia and Wattle species, and also many Eucalypts.
Fact 2: Defence from enemies
Possums are territorial and will urinate on their area and rub oil from glands on their chest, chin and anus to mark it as theirs. They are generally shy and not aggressive and will often stare at each other with erect ears to defend their territory.
The common Brushtail Possum often has a red-brown stain on its chest fur from a scent gland which it uses to mark its territory.
Brushtail possums have a range of vocalizations such as clicks, hisses, grunts and coughs, chattering and screeching. Ringtail Possums will secrete a strong smelling liquid from their anal glands if handled. If they are trapped, however, possums will defend themselves.
Fact 3: Habitat
Possums are arboreal animals and spend most of their time in rainforests, eucalypt forests and wooded garden areas and shrubs that have dense foliage near a water source. While they do not dig underground dens, they are happy to take up residence in tree hollows, and the Ringtail Possum will build a soccer ball sized nest (drey) several metres above ground in dense foliage which they line with leaves, grass and soft bark.
Although they prefer tree-dwelling, possums will seek out house roofs, garages, sheds and also chimneys.
Fact 4: Behaviour
Possums are nocturnal and mainly feed between dusk and dawn.
Brushtail Possums are generally lone creatures, choosing a company when they want to breed. Ringtail Possums, however, have larger family groups where one male and one or two females will share a drey and forage together for food at night and they share parenting duties. The Ringtail Possum male is currently the only possum known to help care for its young.
With both Ringtail and Brushtail possums the newly born will crawl to the mother’s pouch where it will receive milk from a teat for around 4-5 months. The young leave the pouch and suckle for another 4-8 weeks riding on their parent’s back until fully weaned.
Once they reach 13 months of age, possums are sexually active. With an average life span of 6-7 years and up to 11 years, that gives possums plenty of opportunities to have lots of babies, especially the Common Ringtail Possum which can have 2 and sometimes 3 joeys at a time!
Possums are incredibly agile! They can climb vertical walls and have been known to jump from a tree to roof up to 4 metres away! They can pull off roof tiles and squeeze through the smallest of holes. They have been seen walking along power lines and balancing on fine branches.
They are as inventive as they are supple! One possum pair eager to get their paws on tasty garden veggies were witnessed balancing like acrobats: one hanging from a branch, holding the other’s back legs in its front paws and lowering him down the tree!
Fact 5: Destruction
Possums aren’t aggressive, however, they do have the tendency to eat whatever they can and take shelter anywhere they feel safe, including inside the household roof.
The most common types of destruction possums can do to our home include: defecating on sheds, attics or house verandas, raiding poultry houses to eat chicks and eggs, tearing insulation and ductwork, and pilfering garbage bins and bird feeders. They also mark their territory with scent glands and urine, which smells pungent and is unhygienic.
Other wildlife can leave similar trademarks. To be certain that any damage was caused by possums and not another native animal, check for their foot tracks.
Fact 6: Fur, Skin and Meat
Possum fur is incredibly smooth and silky with hollow fibre, providing the perfect insulation and soft, light garments. Currently, up to 10,000 possums are commercially killed in Tasmania for the domestic fur and skin market and also the domestic meat market. There are plans to expand this total commercially to up to 100,000 under the Tasmanian Management Plan for the Commercial Harvest and Export of Brushtail Possums.
For crop protection alone around 300,000 Brushtail Possums are killed each year in Tasmania under permit. These measures are taken to decrease the potential destruction of crops while ensuring the possum population does not become extinct.
Fact 7: Diseases and immunities
While bovine tuberculosis is a problem in New Zealand possums, there is no evidence that Australian possums carry the disease. In fact, Australia is tuberculosis free.
Possums, however, can carry a variety of mites, ticks, other parasites, and bacterial infections, some of which can be transmitted to animals and/or humans. Possum faeces may also carry the Buruli bacteria, which can cause sizeable skin ulcers in humans. Barwon Health Associate Professor Daniel O’Brien has said that: “a good public health measure is to remove the possum faeces from the area as much as possible and wash your hands as much as you can after that to minimise potential exposures.”
Fact 8: Unique Tail
The Brushtail Possum has a prehensile tip to its tail which allows it to grasp branches as if it had another hand. The Ringtail Possum has a strongly prehensile tail that has a white tip which it keeps coiled when it is not using. Both will use their tails for carrying nesting materials such as bunches of grass by looping their tails around them.
Fact 9: Communication
Both Jack (male) and Jill (female) possums will attract the attention of other possums by making smacking noises. Joeys, however, will sneeze and hiss when they are stressed or in danger.
Fact 10: Major Disadvantages
Possums can be destructive to trees and wildlife as they feed on almost any food available. They can also destroy what is in the home roof once it becomes their shelter.
Commercial crops can be devastated, as can home gardens and prized trees, shrubs, bushes and flowers.
Some diseases can be passed from possums to humans through contact with either the animal or their faeces.
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