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Didelphis virginiana
These opossums vary in size with the larger ones in the northerly part of their range. They are about 35-94 cm (13–37 inches) in length; individuals in the tropics are considerably smaller. Coats are gray/brown with some grizzling. The nose and toes are pink. The tail is bare of hair and gray in color. The face is white with dark ears.
These animals are often found in cities, where they feed on garbage and pet food left out overnight. Rarely seen in daylight. At one time, the St. Paul/Minneapolis area of Minnesota was the limit of their northern range in our area, but these animals have expanded their range northward in recent years, perhaps in response to a warming climate.
It's mating season for opossum in our area. I've seen this pair on several occasions over the course of the last three days.
Spotted on Mar 3, 2013
Submitted on Mar 3, 2013
9 Comments
Very nice! I feed a wild cat, but I think I would recognize their tracks if they came to her bowl ( so far only cat prints (:
Hi Gordon. I really like your series. Very cool animals. What a find. Glad you spotted two. They were posing for you. HA!
Such a beautiful series! So happy to see opossums that are so vibrant here on PN rather than the lifeless ones on the road while driving....
Beautiful photos Gordon :)
Thanks Karen and Joshua for your very kind words...
You took a simple, well known animal and made it look amazing. great series Gordon thank you.
Lovely series Gordon!
Thanks Ashley. These two opossums wandered down our driveway and through the backyard. We have a woods that abuts the yard and these two were heading there. I followed them for about 20 minutes (forgot my coat) until they entered a hole beneath a brush pile. Didn't realize I was getting cold, although I stopped photographing these two for a minute while I rolled down my sleeves...grin. I find animals so interesting, I often forget just about everything else when watching them.
Beautiful photos Gordon!