Marc Henry, age 10, of Staten Island, N.Y., for his question:
WHERE DOES THE OPOSSUM LIVE?
A number of mammals carry their young in a pouch on the mother's abdomen after they are born. Animals of this type are called marsupials. Most of them, such as the kangaroo and the wombat, live in Australia. The only marsupial native of North America is the opossum. Many of the species live in Central and South America but lots of them can be found in North America.
The common opossum is the only kind of opossum found only in the United States. About the size of a big house cat, the opossum has rough grayish white hair, a long snout, black eyes and big hairless ears. Weighing about 15 pounds, the animal is about two feet long.
A long tail that doesn't have very much hair on it is another feature of the common opossum. It's a prehensile tail, which means that it can almost be used as a third hand. Often the animal hangs upside down by wrapping his tail around the branch of a tree.
A common opossum has 50 teeth, which is more than any other North American mammal. The teeth and claws are sharp.
The opossum prefers woodland and ordinarily stays in an area of between 20 and 40 acres, although occasionally wanders long distances. Many individuals frequent clumps of trees or wood lots on farms. All make their homes in hollow trees or rocky dens and eat berries, fruits, insects, lizards, mice, frogs, eggs, small birds and grain.
Opossums mate twice a year, from January through February anal then again in May and June. Thirteen days after the mating, between 5 and 20 greatly underdeveloped babies are born. Each youngster is about the size of a bee, and on his own he must crawl through his mother's fur until he finds the opening of her pouch. Here each baby takes a firm hold of one of the 12 teats. Those unable to obtain a location with milk, starve. At the end of three months, seven or eight youngsters have usually survived and they then leave the mother to go out on their own.
Opossums look for food at night. When in danger, the animal will lie motionless and appear to be dead. From this habit, we say a person is "playing possum'' when he pretends to be injured.
One of the species found only in Central and South America is the small tree dwelling murine opossum. He greatly resembles a mouse. wooly opossums have thick, soft fur and the pelts are used to make women's coats or trimmings. Another of the South and Central American opossums is the yapok, a marsupial that is adapted for living in the water. He has webbed feet and is a good swimmer.