What are facts about possums?

Answer 1

They always get hit by cars in the night and they like trash cans.

Answer 2

True possums are marsupials native to Australia (with some varieties found also in New Guinea and the Indonesian island of Sulawesi). Possums are quite different to American opossums.

Possums, like opossums, are marsupials. This means their young are born very undeveloped, and complete their development in the mother's pouch, firmly attached to a teat.

There are about 70 known species of possums. Possums range in size from being as small as an adult human's finger (e.g. pygmy possums), to just over one metre in length, tail included (e.g. brushtail and ringtail possums). Their fur ranges in colour from grey to brown-grey, with some varieties having a russet colour. The Western Pygmy Possum is a bright cinnamon colour.

Possums have long tails which are used for balancing. Their tails are semi prehensile, and they help the animal grip electric wires and narrow tree branches. The brush-tailed possum has a distinctive, thick tail while the ring-tail possum's tail is thinner, with a distinctive curl.

Possums are arboreal; they are adept climbers with sharp claws, and they also use their front claws to grasp and hold food.

Answer 3

1. Possums are marsupials, meaning the female has a pouch in which the baby develops.

2. Possum babies are called 'joeys', just as all marsupial young are called joeys.

3. The possum is a completely different animal from the opossum of North America. Possums belong to the family Phalangeridae and order Marsupialia, while opossums belong to the order Didelphimorphia, although they are also marsupials.

4. True possums are found in New Guinea, Australia (including Tasmania), Sulawesi (Indonesia) and a few other small islands in the Pacific region.

5. All possums have furry tails, unlike the North American Opossum which has a bare tail, and they are prehensile or semi-prehensile.

6. Although not native to New Zealand, the brush-tailed possum was introduced into that country over a century ago and has subsequently become a pest, causing untold environmental disaster.

7. There are many varieties of possums in Australia (and New Guinea), including Gliders and the Cuscus.

8. Captain Cook's botanist, Sir Joseph Banks, named the Australian animal "Possum", referring to it as "an animal of the Opossum tribe" because he believed there was a physical resemblance.

Answer 4

1. Sneaky

1. Scavenger

1. Mischievous

1. Quick

1. Risk Taker

1. Outgoing
2. Daring
3. Slinky
4. Obnoxious

1. Fierce

1. Independent
2. Careful
3. Swift

1. Attentive

1. Intelligent

1. Bold

1. Efficient

Answer 5

Here are some facts about opossums.

• They are the only marsupial in America and Canada
  
• Baby opossums are as tiny as honeybees when they are first born
• They have 50 teeth as adults - more than any mammal in America
• It is very rare for an opossum to carry rabies
• Possums have existed since the extinction of the dinosaurs
• When threatened, opossums can mimic being dead, even exuding a foul-smelling odor like a dead animal

Answer 6

Possums are native to Australia, New Guinea, and Sulawesi. Adults are about 70 millimeters in length, and 10 grams in weight.

Answer 7

They are about the size of a cat, with a rat-like prehensile tail, black ears, and white and grey fur.

Answer 8

there are about 20 milion possums in new zealand. many trees in australia have possums defences suchas spines,prickles or poisonous leaves-ours dont

Answer 9

A possum is a tree-dwelling marsupial native to Australia.

It is quite different to the opossum of North America.

Answer 10

to play dead