We know the possums these marsupials that they remind a rodent without actually being one nor distant relatives. We will see how they are, where they live and how they behave.
So, if you are interested in these animals, stay to read more about them.
How are the Opossums?
Opossums are a genus of didelphimorphic marsupials called didelphis. Name didelphis derives from the Greek and comes to mean "divided or double uterus", which defines that they have a bag similar to kangaroos.
La The threat of opossums is fundamentally from being run over and the destruction of their habitats. They cause damage to crops and attack poultry, so ranchers and farmers also try to keep them away from their crops and livestock to protect them. They are a species used in laboratories for testing.
Some of the species of possums such as the "marsupialis" are carriers of disease so you must be careful in the areas where they live and avoid being injured by them.
Behavior
Are mainly nocturnal habits. The hours of sun are spent hidden or sheltered among rocks, burrows, caves or hollow logs.
when they perform their nest, surround it with grass and leaves they carry either in their mouths or with their tails.
Although they can be seen climbing, they usually have a more terrestrial behavior. When climb trees is in search of food. They spend most of their time grooming themselves. wash face and hair with hands.
They are not social animals, the males usually go alone and fight with each other. The females can seek protection with other females and live several together at the same time. Young people can also use this defensive mechanism.
When it comes to defending yourself They can play dead in the face of a very strong danger and from which they do not have time to attack or flee. However, the most common is that they have an aggressive and fierce start. Its mouth can open wide (an angle of more than 80º) and is full of sharp teeth.
The females they usually carry their young on their backs using the tail to maintain contact with them.
They are animals opportunistic, so it is easy to see them foraging for food in urban environments. However, as they have nocturnal habits, it is not easy to see them.
Features
Although the appearance of opossums may resemble rodents or shrews, they are not related. Their bodies are of a medium size and sexually dimorphic in which males can double the weight of females.
They have a coat of long, coarse hair covering their entire bodies. This fur can be of a varied color, especially ranges of black-gray and reddish, but whites can also be found.
The head is large in comparison to the body and the snout elongated and with fimbriae (A kind of little hairs that act as tactile receptors and through which you can tell if you run into something). The face is pale in color without reaching white and on the forehead a black stripe, something very characteristic of opossums. This band also crosses the eyes. The ears are hairless and narrow and black in adulthood.
The extremities are black. The tail is prehensile and is longer than the length of the body. The tail fades from the furry part closest to the body to a scaly part where the tail ends. Similarly, it goes from black to white.
Reproduction
The females have kangaroo-like bag, where they have different nipples, they can have up to 13 arranged in a circle and one central one. They have 28-day cycles and usually have two births a year. as average. Some females can have a third litter, although it is not the most common.
La Gestation lasts between 12-13 days and up to 20 pups can be born at the same time. After will remain in the bag until developed altogether. The pups could stay attached to their mother's teat for 60 days straight. The usual thing is that after 100 days they are weaned and can already leave the bag.
La They usually reach sexual maturity around 6 to 8 months of age.. This implies that in the first year of life many females already have their first litter.
Habitat
They are animals that adapt to practically any habitat since they could survive both arid places and cold places. However, they have their preferences and those are the ones. humid zones type jungles or temperate forests. They are easily found in the southern half of the United States and the neotropics.
Food
All species of Opossums are omnivorous, thus they feed on almost anything edible that they can find within reach. They can eat from fruits or grains to insects, small vertebrates or carrion.
In areas where the climate is more problematic and may mean finding less food, opossums they accumulate fat in the tail to be in the nest on the most ungodly days such as very cold winter days. This is different from hibernating, which they don't.