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What You Need to Know
People easily confuse opossum and possum . These small marsupials have name so similar that they ’re often used interchangeably . EvenMerriam - Webster notesthat both name colloquially refer to the Virginia phalanger present in North America and that the Book “ opossum ” can be pronounced with its first syllable voiced or silent . Both possums and phalanger have a flexile diet and run through various plants and animal matter scavenged from their milieu . Despite these similarities , however , possums and opossums are , in fact , unlike animals . Here are seven central conflict to help homeowner distinguish between these tiny marsupials .
1. Possums are native to Australia, New Zealand, and China, while opossums live in America and SouthernCanada.
locating is the most straightforward way for homeowner to specify whether they ’ve bump a possum or an opossum . The possum is native to Australia , New Zealand , New Guinea , and China . possum prefer to progress their den in forests and other wooded area and may even build little rock music dens if the terrain allows . However , these critter are reasonably opportunistic and can make the most of the land around them .
Conversely , the possum lives in North America , particularly in the continental United States and southern Canada . The utmost cold of northerly Canada limits these marsupials from migrating much further .
2. The possum has a furry tail, while the opossum has a bare tail.
One key difference between the opossum and the opossum is their tails . A opossum ’s prat is thick and furry , much like that of a squirrel . The name of one of the most far-flung possum species – the coarse brushtail possum – highlights this feature .
An opossum , on the other hand , can be recognise by its theme song bare tail . With coarse pelt covering its whole body up until the rear , this creature more closely resembles a large rat than the fluffier possum .
3. Possums are smaller than opossums.
Depending on their species , possumscan rove in sizefrom less than an ounce to over 20 pound . However , the brushtail phalanger averages around five British pound . With fewer subspecies ( and only one in North America ) , opossums aremore uniform in size of it . They weigh between 8.8 to 13.2 pounds , with a distance of 2.5 feet from nozzle to tail — larger than the coarse brushtail possum .
4. Opossums have pointed white faces and coarse fur, whereas possums have rounded bodies with a thick golden or brown coat.
The opossum of North America typically have pointed white human face with shameful eyes and toothed teeth . They also have coarse soundbox fur that is usually dark gray , though some may take on a cinnamon or white coloring material .
The possum of Australia , on the other hand , have rounded bodies and softer feature article . Their hallmark wooden-headed pelt is ordinarily lucky or browned , but sure species also have grey , black , or clean coloring . opossum typically have large brownish eye that take on an amber hue in the sunlight .
5. Possums belong to the Diprotodontia order, while opossums belong to the Didelphimorphia order.
While opossum and phalanger both fall under the cosmopolitan class of pouched mammal , they belong to different orders . Possums belong to the Diprotodontia order , which is the largest existing order of marsupials with approximately 155 metal money ; the name “ Diprotodontia ” comes from the Greek Word of God meaning “ two advancing tooth . ” Other common diprotodonts admit kangaroo , koala bear , and wombats . The possum shine under the suborder Phalangeriformes , a chemical group of small to intermediate - sized arborical marsupials .
Opossums , on the other manus , belong to the Didelphimorphia order . This is the large order of marsupials in the Western Hemisphere , make up over 110 species . The name “ Didelphimorphia ” follows the Latin naming conventionalism and bear on to “ two wombs . ”
6. There are many possum species, such as the Cuscus and Glider species, which is not the case for the opossum.
The suborder of possum include several coinage . Brushtail possums are the most common pouched mammal in Australia ( and perhaps the well - known variety ) . Their foresighted , thick tails with a movable point and stark patch on the undersurface help them fascinate tree arm . Another type of possum is the Bassariscus astutus , a species that know in communal nest within tree diagram offset and excavate . The Phalangeriformes suborder also includes various glider mintage , a group of marsupials that have develop flaps of skins between their arm and legs to help them soar .
Different possum species can also run immensely in sizing . The cuscus outrank among the largest possum case , including the 22 - pound Sulawesi bear cuscus . For comparison , the pocket-size species is the Tasmanian pygmy opossum , which is the size of it of a black eye and weigh less than a pencil .
While other coinage of opossum also exist in the Western cerebral hemisphere , there is only one found in North America : the Virginia possum . It is often just refer to as “ opossum ” since there are no other marsupial or race on the continent .
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7. Possums and opossums react very differently to potential predators.
The colloquial idiomatic expression “ play phalanger ” is really refer to an evolutionary conduct grow by the North American pouched mammal . In the face of potential danger , the possum essentially inscribe a comatose state and play dead . This state , which can last anywhere between two minutes to two hours , is highly effective in keeping the critter safe from passing predators .
Interestingly , the genuine possum ( of Australian line of descent ) does not really play possum . Unlike their North American opposite number , opossum are incredibly friendly and show no reservations in walking up to stranger . Unfortunately , this behavior also makes them an easy objective for pelt poachers .
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