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Information about Opossum

For the Eastern Hemisphere marsupial, see possum.
Didelphimorphia[1]
Fossil range: Late Cretaceous - Recent
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Virginia Opossum Didelphis virginiana

Virginia Opossum Didelphis virginiana
Scientific classification
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Chordata
Class:Mammalia
Infraclass:Marsupialia
Order:Didelphimorphia
Gill, 1872
Family:Didelphidae
Gray, 1821
Genera


Several; see text
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Opossum fur is quite soft, and was once commonly used in the bathtub as a sponge.
Didelphimorphia is the order of common opossums of the Western Hemisphere. Opossums probably diverged from the basic South American marsupials in the late Cretaceous or early Paleocene. A sister group is Paucituberculata (shrew opossums). They are commonly also called "possums," though that term is also applied to Australian fauna of the suborder Phalangeriformes. The Virginia Opossum is the original animal named "opossum". The word comes from Algonquian wapathemwa. Colloquially, the Virginia opossum is frequently called simply possum.

Didelphimorphs are small to medium-sized marsupials, about the size of a large house cat. They tend to be semi-arboreal omnivores, although there are many exceptions. Most members of this taxon have long snouts, a narrow braincase, and a prominent sagittal crest. The dental formula (one side of one jaw) includes five incisors (four on the lower jaw), one canine, three premolars and four tricuspid molars. By mammal standards, this is a very full jaw. The incisors are very small, the canines large.

Didelphimorphs have a plantigrade stance (feet flat on the ground) and the hind feet have an opposable digit with no claw. Like some primates, opossums have prehensile tails. The stomach is simple, with a small cecum. Opossum reproductive systems are extremely basic, with a reduced marsupium. This means that the young are born at a very early stage. The species are moderately sexually dimorphic with males usually being somewhat larger than females. The largest difference between the opossum and other sexually reproductive animals is the bifurcated penis of the male and bifurcated vagina of the female (the source of the Latin "didelphis," meaning double-wombed).

Didelphimorphs are opportunistic omnivores with a very broad range of diet. Their unspecialized biology, flexible diet and reproductive strategy make them successful colonizers and survivors in unsettled times. Originally native to the eastern United States, the Virginia Opossum was intentionally introduced into the west during the Great Depression, probably as a source of food. Its range has been expanding steadily northwards, thanks in part to more plentiful, man-made sources of fresh water, increased shelter due to urban encroachment, and milder winters. Its range has extended into Ontario, Canada, and it has been found farther north than Toronto.

Opossums are usually nomadic, staying in one area as long as food and water are easily available. Though they will temporarily occupy abandoned burrows, they do not dig or put much effort into building their own. They favor dark, secure areas, below ground or above.

When threatened or harmed, they will "", mimicking the appearance and smell of a sick or dead animal. The lips are drawn back, teeth are bared, saliva foams around the mouth, and a foul-smelling fluid is secreted from the anal glands. The physiological response is involuntary, rather than a conscious act. Their stiff, curled form can be prodded, turned over, and even carried away. Many injured opossums have been killed by well-meaning people who find a catatonic animal and assume the worst. The best thing to do upon finding an injured or apparently dead opossum is to leave it in a quiet place with a clear exit path. In minutes or hours, the animal will regain consciousness and escape quietly on its own.

Adult opossums do not hang from trees by their tails, though babies may dangle temporarily. Their prehensile tails are not strong enough to support a mature adult's weight. Instead, the opossum uses its tail as a brace and a fifth limb when climbing. The tail is occasionally used as a grip to carry bunches of leaves or bedding materials to the nest. A mother will sometimes often her young upon her back, where they will cling tightly even when she is climbing or running.

Threatened opossums (especially male) will growl deeply, raising the pitch as the threat becomes more urgent. Males make a clicking "smack" noise out of the side of their mouths as they wander in search of a mate, and females will sometimes repeat the sound in return. When separated or distressed, baby opossums will make a sneezing noise to signal their mother.

Opossums have a remarkably robust immune system, and show partial or total immunity to the venom of rattlesnakes, cottonmouths, and other pit vipers.[2][3] Thanks to their lower blood temperature, rabies is almost unknown in opossums.[4]

The opossum lifespan is unusually short for a mammal of its size, usually only 2 to 4 years. Senescence is rapid.[5]

The opossum was described as early as 1565 in the published letter entitled "Carigueya, Seu Marsupiale Americanum Masculum. Or, The Anatomy of a Male Opossum: In a Letter to Dr Edward Tyson, from Mr William Cowper, Chirurgeon, and Fellow of the Royal Society, London. To Which are Premised Some Further Observations on the Opossum; And a New Division of Terrestrial Brute Animals, Particularly of Those That Have Their Feet Formed Like Hands. Where an Account is Given of Some Animals Not Yet Described", by Edward Tyson, M. D. Fellow of the College of Physicians and of the Royal Society. The letter suggests even earlier descriptions.[6]

Use as food

The opossum was a favorite game animal in the United States, and in particular the southern regions which have a large body of recipes and folklore relating to the opossum. Opossum was once widely consumed in the United States where available as evidenced by recipes in older editions of The Joy of Cooking. In Dominica and Trinidad opossum or "manicou" is popular and can only be hunted during certain times of the year due to over-hunting; the meat is traditionally prepared by smoking then stewing. The meat is light and fine grained, but the musk glands must be removed as part of preparation. The meat can be used in place of rabbit and chicken in recipes. The cousin of the opossum, the possum, found in Australia and New Zealand is consumed in a similar manner. (Davidson, 1999)

Historically, hunters in the Caribbean would place a barrel with fresh or rotten fruit to attract opossums who would feed on the fruit or insects. Cubans growing up in the mid-twentieth century tell of brushing the maggots out of the mouths of "manicou" caught in this manner to prepare them for consumption. It is said also that the gaminess of the meat causes gas.

In Mexico, opossums are known as "tlacuache" or "tlaquatzin". Their tails are eaten as a folk remedy to improve fertility.

Opossum oil (Possum grease) is high in essential fatty acids and has been used as a chest rub and a carrier for arthritis remedies given as topical salves.

Classification

References

1. ^ Gardner, Alfred (November 16, 2005). in Wilson, D. E., and Reeder, D. M. (eds): Mammal Species of the World, 3rd edition, Johns Hopkins University Press, 3-18. ISBN 0-801-88221-4. 
2. ^ [1]
3. ^ [2]
4. ^ [3]
5. ^ [4]
6. ^ [5]
 •  • [ e]
Extant mammal orders by subclass
Phalangeriformes
Szalay in Archer, 1982

Superfamilies and Families

Phalangeroidea
  • Burramyidae
  • Phalangeridae
Petauroidea
  • Pseudocheiridae
  • Petauridae
  • Tarsipedidae
  • Acrobatidae


A possum
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Late Cretaceous (100mya - 65mya) refers to the second half of the Cretaceous Period, named after the famous white chalk cliffs of southern England, which date from this time. Rocks deposited during the Late Cretaceous Period are referred to as the Upper Cretaceous Series.
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D. virginiana

Binomial name
Didelphis virginiana
(Kerr, 1792)

The Virginia Opossum (Didelphis virginiana) is the only marsupial found in North America north of the Rio Grande River.
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Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. Scientific classification also can be called scientific taxonomy, but should be distinguished from folk taxonomy, which lacks scientific basis.
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Chordata
Bateson, 1885

Typical Classes

See below

Chordates (phylum Chordata) are a group of animals that includes the vertebrates, together with several closely related invertebrates.
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Mammalia
Linnaeus, 1758

Subclasses & Infraclasses
  • Subclass †Allotheria*
  • Subclass Prototheria
  • Subclass Theria

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Marsupialia
Illiger, 1811

Orders
  • Didelphimorphia
  • Paucituberculata
  • Microbiotheria
  • Dasyuromorphia
  • Peramelemorphia
  • Notoryctemorphia
  • Diprotodontia
  • Sparassodonta (extinct)
  • Yalkaparidontia (extinct)
Marsupials
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Theodore Nicholas Gill (March 21, 1837 – September 25, 1914) was an American ichthyologist.

Gill was professor of zoology at George Washington University. He was also a member of the Megatherium Club at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.
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John Edward Gray

Born January 12 1800(1800--)
Walsall, England
Died March 07 1875 (aged 75)

Nationality British
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genus (plural: genera) is part of the Latinized name for an organism. It is a name which reflects the classification of the organism by grouping it with other closely similar organisms.
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order (Latin: ordo, plural ordines) is a rank between class and family (termed a taxon at that rank). The superorder is a rank between class and order. Exact details of formal nomenclature depend on the Nomenclature Code which applies.
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Western Hemisphere, also Western hemisphere[1] or western hemisphere,[2] is a geographical term for the half of the Earth that lies west of the Prime Meridian (which crosses Greenwich in London, England, United Kingdom), the other half being the
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South America is a continent of the Americas, situated entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east by the Atlantic Ocean; North America and the Caribbean Sea lie
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Marsupialia
Illiger, 1811

Orders
  • Didelphimorphia
  • Paucituberculata
  • Microbiotheria
  • Dasyuromorphia
  • Peramelemorphia
  • Notoryctemorphia
  • Diprotodontia
  • Sparassodonta (extinct)
  • Yalkaparidontia (extinct)
Marsupials
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The Cretaceous Period is one of the major divisions of the geologic timescale, reaching from the end of the Jurassic Period (i.e. from 145.5 ± 4.0 million years ago (Ma)) to the beginning of the Paleocene epoch of the Tertiary Period (about 65.5 ± 0.3 Ma).
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The Paleocene, "early dawn of the recent", is a geologic epoch that lasted from 65.5 ± 0.3 Ma to 55.8 ± 0.2 Ma (million years ago). It is the first epoch of the Palaeogene Period in the modern Cenozoic era.
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Paucituberculata
Ameghino, 1894

Family: Caenolestidae
Trouessart, 1898

Genera

 Caenolestes
 Lestoros
 Rhyncholestes

The biological order
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Paucituberculata
Ameghino, 1894

Family: Caenolestidae
Trouessart, 1898

Genera

 Caenolestes
 Lestoros
 Rhyncholestes

The biological order
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Anthem
Advance Australia Fair [1]


Capital Canberra

Largest city Sydney
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Phalangeriformes
Szalay in Archer, 1982

Superfamilies and Families

Phalangeroidea
  • Burramyidae
  • Phalangeridae
Petauroidea
  • Pseudocheiridae
  • Petauridae
  • Tarsipedidae
  • Acrobatidae


A possum
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D. virginiana

Binomial name
Didelphis virginiana
(Kerr, 1792)

The Virginia Opossum (Didelphis virginiana) is the only marsupial found in North America north of the Rio Grande River.
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Algonquian (also Algonquin) languages are a subfamily of Native American languages that includes most of the languages in the Algic language family (the two Algic languages that are not Algonquian are Wiyot and Yurok of northwestern California).
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Marsupialia
Illiger, 1811

Orders
  • Didelphimorphia
  • Paucituberculata
  • Microbiotheria
  • Dasyuromorphia
  • Peramelemorphia
  • Notoryctemorphia
  • Diprotodontia
  • Sparassodonta (extinct)
  • Yalkaparidontia (extinct)
Marsupials
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F. s. catus

Trinomial name
Felis silvestris catus
(Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms
Felis lybica invalid junior synonym
Felis catus invalid junior synonym[2]

The cat (
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Arboreal is a word meaning "related to or resembling trees". Its meaning comes from the Latin arbor, meaning tree.

In biology, an arboreal animal is one which inhabits or spends large amounts of time in trees or bushes.
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An omnivore (from Latin: omne all, everything; vorare to devour) is a species of animal that eats both plants and animals as its primary food source.
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For the journal, see .
A taxon (plural taxa), or taxonomic unit, is a name designating an organism or group of organisms. A taxon is assigned a rank and can be placed at a particular level in a systematic hierarchy reflecting evolutionary
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A snout is the protruding portion of an animal's face, consisting of its nose, mouth, and jaw. The snout is also often called a muzzle. A piece of equipment also called a muzzle can be placed over the snout to prevent the animal from biting or eating, often used before and
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skull is a bony structure found in many animals which serves as the general framework for the head. The skull supports the structures of the face and protects the head against injury.

The skull can be subdivided into two parts: the cranium and the mandible.
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