The common opossum (''Didelphis marsupialis''), also called the southern or black-eared opossum or gambá, and sometimes called a possum, is a

marsupial Marsupials are any members of the mammalian infraclass Marsupialia. All extant marsupials are endemic to Australasia, Wallacea and the Americas. A distinctive characteristic common to most of these species is that the young are carried in a ...

species living from the northeast of

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

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(reaching the coast of the South

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to the central coast of

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

), including

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in the

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, where it is called manicou. It prefers the woods, but can also live in fields and cities.

Habitat and shelter

This opossum is found in tropical and subtropical forest, both

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and

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, at altitudes up to 2200 m. They use a wide range of nest sites. Most commonly they will create one in the hollow of a tree; however, they will also dig a burrow or nest in any dark location if nothing else is suitable (which often gets them in trouble with humans). Opossums enjoy denning underground, but do not spend as much time underground when it is dry season. Common predators of the opossum are humans, house pets (ex: dogs and cats), and birds. When they are in danger, they act dead, also called, 'playing opossum.'

Description

The common opossum is similar in size to a

house cat The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members of ...

. The fur of the opossum is actually yellow in the under-fur, but is hidden by the longer black guard-hairs that cover it, while the tail, fingers, and face are lighter "with the tail being without fur, somewhat similar to a giant rat tail". It can measure nearly 20 inches long. It has large ears that are usually black, and its face is usually a pale peach in color, with black whiskers and eyes that reflect reddish in light. With a body length of nearly a foot, and a tail that can reach almost two feet, the common opossum is one of the larger members of its family. An adult can weigh more than three pounds.

Behavior

Their activity is mainly

nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...

and terrestrial, with some

arboreal Arboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some animals may scale trees only occasionally, but others are exclusively arboreal. The habitats pose nu ...

exploration and nesting. Outside of mating, they are usually solitary. A male opossum's home range (distance traveled at night) can vary in size from wet to dry seasons while a female has a more stationary home range when she is breeding. Males are most active between 11 pm and 3 am at night. They are considered pests due to their somewhat raccoon-like behavior. Raiding trash cans, nesting in locations that are not suitable, and causing mayhem if encountered within a human living space, they are often trapped and killed. Opossums have not been observed to be territorial. The common opossum is a host of the

acanthocephala Acanthocephala (Greek , ', thorn + , ', head) is a phylum of parasitic worms known as acanthocephalans, thorny-headed worms, or spiny-headed worms, characterized by the presence of an eversible proboscis, armed with spines, which it uses to p ...

n intestinal parasite '' Gigantorhynchus lutzi''. Common predators of the opossum are humans, house pets (ex: dogs and cats), and birds. When they are in danger, they act dead, also called, 'playing opossum'.

Diet

Common opossums have a broad ability to adapt to environmental changes, and their teeth allow them to eat many different types of food, which is obtained mostly on the ground. They can eat insects (such as

beetle Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

s and

grasshopper Grasshoppers are a group of insects belonging to the suborder Caelifera. They are among what is possibly the most ancient living group of chewing herbivorous insects, dating back to the early Triassic around 250 million years ago. Grasshoppe ...

s) and other invertebrates (such as

earthworm An earthworm is a terrestrial invertebrate that belongs to the phylum Annelida. They exhibit a tube-within-a-tube body plan; they are externally segmented with corresponding internal segmentation; and they usually have setae on all segments. Th ...

s), small vertebrates (toads uch_as_cane_toads.html"_;"title="cane_toad.html"_;"title="uch_as_cane_toad">uch_as_cane_toads">cane_toad.html"_;"title="uch_as_cane_toad">uch_as_cane_toads_snakes_[such_as_Crotalus_durissus.html" ;"title="cane_toad">uch_as_cane_toads.html" ;"title="cane_toad.html" ;"title="uch as cane toad">uch as cane toads">cane_toad.html" ;"title="uch as cane toad">uch as cane toads snakes [such as Crotalus durissus">South American rattlesnakes], birds [such as lance-tailed manakins], and small mammals), fruits, vegetables, nectar, and also carrion. In urban areas, they may find articles of food in compost piles and garbage cans. Their ability to digest almost anything edible gives them a broader range than a human.

Reproduction

The female will have 5-9 offspring between one and three times per year after maturity. The mother raises the young by herself. The common opossum can mate for the majority of the calendar year. They do not mate for life. Female opossums can give birth to at most 24 infants, however, only a third of them usually survive. Young opossums stay with the mother for the first few months of their lives and reach maturity before they are a year old.

Lifespan

The common opossum lives for around 2-4 years.

Classification

They are members of the genus ''Didelphis'', which contains the largest American opossums, and the order Didelphimorphia, to which all Western hemisphere opossums belong. The common opossum is currently not an endangered species.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q194663 Opossums Marsupials of North America Marsupials of Central America Marsupials of South America Mammals of the Caribbean Mammals of Mexico Mammals of Trinidad and Tobago Mammals of Bolivia Mammals of Brazil Mammals of Colombia Mammals of Ecuador Mammals of French Guiana Mammals of Guyana Mammals of Paraguay Mammals of Peru Mammals of Suriname Mammals of Venezuela Mammals described in 1758 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus