In a recent video, a man takes us along on his hiking adventure, where he unexpectedly runs into an opossum. Instead of just moving along, he decides to give us some fun facts about this misunderstood animal.
As soon as the opossum spots him, it gets so scared that it faints, literally “playing possum.” The man explains that this isn’t something the animal chooses to do – it’s a natural, involuntary response when they’re terrified. They just pass out!
Once the opossum starts to wake up, the man gently holds it and shows us its teeth, mentioning how opossums actually have 50 teeth! He quickly adds that, even with all those teeth, opossums aren’t likely to bite.
Next, he talks about how opossums are surprisingly clean animals:
“I’m not really in danger of getting rabies. I know these animals might look dirty or kind of like a rat, but they are actually super clean animals.”
In fact, opossums groom themselves constantly, and one of their coolest habits is eating ticks. On average, a single opossum eats around 5,000 ticks each year, which helps reduce the spread of Lyme disease.
Anytime they come into contact with something and pick up a tick, they eat it!
Although they can technically get rabies, it’s very rare. That’s because their body temperature is too low for the rabies virus to survive.
And if you thought that was interesting, here’s something even cooler – they’re immune to snake venom!
Yes, these little guys won’t be fazed by a snakebite. Plus, they’ve got opposable thumbs, and their long tails help them climb and hang out in trees.
When it comes to food: opossums will eat just about anything, making them a pretty good guest at any picnic! However, this means they sometimes end up rummaging through our trash or sneaking bites of the pet food left outside.
That’s why people tend to think of them as being like rats. But, get this, they’re actually closer to kangaroos! Opossums have a pouch on their bellies, which makes them marsupials, and they’re the only ones in North America.
If you thought opossums can’t get any cooler than this, well, they also have whiskers! Just like cats, opossums have whiskers that help them sense their surroundings, especially when they’re digging or exploring.
Throughout the video, the opossum stays calm and doesn’t make a peep. The man continues, sharing that female opossums can have up to 20 babies at a time! Their gestation period is one of the shortest of any mammal: just 14 days.
After they’re born, the babies crawl into their mom’s pouch, hanging out there until they’re too big to fit. Then, they move onto her back until they’re too big and simply fall off. That’s when they go off on their own.
Although we don’t recommend picking them up or trying to pet them, it’s clear that opossums aren’t the dirty, scary animals some people think. They actually play an important role in keeping our environment healthy.