This week’s Animal of the Week is the Virginia opossum, North America’s only native marsupial north of Mexico. Opossums may look unusual, but they are quiet, adaptable and useful animals that help clean up the environment by eating carrion, insects, fruit and other available foods.
Opossums are often judged unfairly because they hiss, show their teeth or wander near trash cans at night. In reality, they are usually shy animals that would rather avoid people than confront them. Their famous “playing possum” defense is not a trick they choose on purpose — it is an involuntary fear response when they feel extremely threatened.
Quick Facts
Animal: Virginia Opossum
Scientific Name: Didelphis virginiana
Animal Type: Mammal / Marsupial
Family: Didelphidae
Diet: Omnivore
Body Support: Endoskeleton
Group Name: Opossums are mostly solitary; there is no commonly used group name
Newborn Weight: About 0.0056 ounce at birth
Average Size: About 13–22 inches long, not including the tail
Average Female Weight: About 4–13 pounds, though males are often larger
Average Male Weight: About 4–13 pounds, though large males may be heavier
Average Lifespan: Usually about 2–5 years
Habitat: Forests, wetlands, farmland, suburbs, cities, brushy areas, hollow logs, burrows, sheds, and under decks
Range: North America, from parts of southern Canada through the United States and into Mexico/Central America
Conservation Status: Least Concern
Mating Season: Usually late winter through fall, depending on climate and location
Babies: Baby opossums are called joeys. Females may give birth to 4–25 young, but fewer usually survive because they must attach inside the pouch.
Social Life: Mostly solitary. Adults usually come together only for mating, and the strongest social bond is between a mother and her young.
What Makes Them Special
They Are Marsupials
The Virginia opossum is not a rodent. It is a marsupial, which means its babies are born extremely tiny and continue developing in the mother’s pouch. This makes the opossum one of the most unique mammals in North America.
They Are Built for Survival
Opossums are not fast, powerful predators. Instead, they survive by being flexible. They can eat many different foods, shelter in many different places and adapt to forests, farms, cities and neighborhoods.
They Help Clean Up the Environment
Opossums are scavengers and opportunistic feeders. They may eat dead animals, insects, fruit, worms, small animals and other natural food sources. This cleanup role helps recycle nutrients and remove decaying material from the environment. Animal Diversity Web describes Virginia opossums as omnivores whose diet changes with season, habitat and available food.
They Have a Famous Defense
When scared, an opossum may hiss, drool, bare its teeth or puff itself up to look more threatening. If that does not work, it may collapse into a death-like state. This is where the phrase “playing possum” comes from.
Habitat
Virginia opossums are extremely adaptable. They can live in forests, wetlands, brushy areas, farmlands, suburban neighborhoods and urban spaces. In human areas, they may shelter under decks, near sheds, in hollow logs, brush piles or abandoned burrows.
They are mostly active at night, which is why people often see them crossing roads, walking along fences or searching for food after dark.
Diet
Opossums are opportunistic omnivores, meaning they eat both plant and animal matter and take advantage of whatever food is available.
Their diet may include:
- Insects
- Worms
- Slugs and snails
- Fruit
- Seeds and grains
- Small rodents
- Frogs
- Snakes
- Eggs
- Carrion
- Human garbage or pet food when available
A common claim says opossums eat thousands of ticks, but that should be handled carefully. A 2021 study reviewing opossum diet research found no ticks in the diet studies it examined and concluded that ticks are not a preferred diet item for Virginia opossums. So it is better to praise opossums for their scavenging, insect-eating and ecosystem cleanup role rather than calling them major tick-control animals.
Behavior
Opossums are usually quiet, shy and non-aggressive. Their scary-looking behaviors are mostly defensive.
Common opossum behaviors include:
Nocturnal foraging:
They search for food mostly at night.
Climbing:
Opossums can climb and use their tail for balance, though they do not hang from their tails like cartoons often show.
Hissing and showing teeth:
This is usually fear, not aggression. Opossums have a lot of teeth, so their warning display can look intense.
Playing dead:
When extremely frightened, an opossum may become limp, still and unresponsive. This can discourage predators that prefer live prey.
Low rabies risk:
Opossums can technically get rabies, but it is rare compared with many other mammals. The National Park Service explains that opossums have a lower body temperature than most mammals, which makes their bodies less suitable for the rabies virus.
Mating Habits
Virginia opossums have one of the most interesting reproductive systems of any North American mammal. Opossums are generally solitary and mating is one of the few times adults come together. Virginia opossums have a polygynous mating system, meaning males may mate with multiple females. Males may compete for access to females during the breeding season.
Breeding Season
The breeding season varies depending on climate and location. In many areas, breeding can begin in late winter and continue through warmer months. Females often have one to three litters per year, with warmer regions allowing more breeding opportunities.
Gestation Length
Opossum pregnancy is extremely short. Gestation lasts only about 12 to 13 days, one of the shortest gestation periods among North American mammals.
How Many Babies Are Born?
A female opossum can give birth to a large litter, often 4 to 25 joeys. However, not all babies survive because the mother has a limited number of nipples in her pouch.
How Long Does the Mother Care for Them?
Newborn opossums are tiny, underdeveloped and helpless. After birth, they crawl into the mother’s pouch and attach to a nipple, where they continue developing.
Opossum babies spend their earliest stage in the pouch, later ride on the mother’s back and are generally independent by around 4 to 5 months old.
Are Opossums Social?
Opossums are mostly solitary animals. They do not live in packs, herds, or permanent family groups. The strongest social bond is between a mother and her young. Once the babies are old enough, they leave and live independently.
Conservation Status
The Virginia opossum is currently listed as Least Concern, meaning the species is not considered at high risk of extinction overall. It is widespread, adaptable and able to survive in many different habitats.
However, individual opossums still face many human-related dangers, including:
- Vehicle strikes
- Habitat loss
- Poisoning from rodenticides and pesticides
- Attacks from loose dogs
- Being trapped or harmed out of fear
- Unsafe access to garbage, roads and human spaces
Because opossums often feed on carrion, roads are especially dangerous. They may be drawn to dead animals on the roadside and then become victims of traffic themselves.
How You Can Help
The best way to help opossums is to respect them as wildlife and give them space.
Helpful actions include:
- Do not intentionally feed opossums.
- Keep trash secured.
- Bring pet food indoors at night.
- Keep dogs supervised, especially after dark.
- Avoid rodenticides and poisons.
- Drive carefully at night.
- Leave healthy opossums alone if they are passing through your yard.
- Contact a licensed wildlife rehabilitator if you find an injured opossum or orphaned babies.
Opossums are not pets. They are wild animals, and they do best when people let them live naturally.
Sources
Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute — Virginia Opossum
https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/virginia-opossum
Virginia Zoo — Virginia Opossum
Visit the Virginia Zoo Animals Today!
Animal Diversity Web — Virginia Opossum
https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Didelphis_virginiana
Illinois Department of Natural Resources — Virginia Opossum
Virginia opossum
NatureServe Explorer — Virginia Opossum
Didelphis virginiana | NatureServe Explorer
Missouri Department of Conservation — Virginia Opossum
https://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/virginia-opossum
National Park Service — Opossums
https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/opossums.htm
BioKIDS — Virginia Opossum
BioKIDS – Kids’ Inquiry of Diverse Species, Didelphis virginiana, virginia opossum: INFORMATION
Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management — Virginia Opossum PDF
https://dem.ri.gov/programs/bnatres/fishwild/pdf/opossum.pdf
Journal of Medical Entomology / PubMed — Are Virginia Opossums Really Ecological Traps for Ticks?
Are Virginia opossums really ecological traps for ticks? Groundtruthing laboratory observations – PubMed