Nature Notebook

Sarett’s bird feeders were visited by a hungry Virginia opossum last week and she left her tracks in the snow. The five spread out toes of the front feet and the distinctive “thumb” print of the back feet make the tracks easy to identify.

Opossums can be found across the eastern and southern U.S. into Central America and have increased their range to Canada but, they are not particularly well-suited to northern winters. However, they are very successful at exploiting urban and suburban areas for shelter and food.

The hardy individuals that try to make a go of it in the wild use hollow trees, brush piles or repurpose old woodchuck burrows by insulating them with dry grass and leaves. During more comfortable weather, opossums are likely to rest in a tree anchored to a branch or small trunk with their prehensile tails. They will not, however, hang by those tails. Their bodies are much too heavy.

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