What Do Possums Eat? Surprising Facts You Won't Believe

Opossums are members of the Didelphidae family.

There are over 60 opossum species in the world. The most common opossum is the Virginia opossum.

It is often confused with other arboreal marsupials in New Guinea. These animals were first seen in South America.

Opossums have a keen sense of hearing and are most active at night. They are omnivores that eat small rodents, birds, bird eggs, fruits, insects, and even dead animals. Opossums have an interesting defense mechanism.

When a possum is attacked by other animals, the possum goes into a shock. In order to protect itself from the predator, its body releases an odor from the anal glands, and saliva is formed around its mouth. This makes the predator think that the possum has been dead for days.

They are attracted to food scraps in garbage cans. Since they are constantly fidgeting with trash cans and making loud noises, they are seen as pests.

Continue reading to know more about possums and their feeding habits. You may also like our articles on what parrots eat and what prairie dogs eat.

What do possums eat in the garden?

Opossums eat everything in a garden. Right from flowers to roots, they eat everything. They are especially fond of vegetable gardens and are known to return to the same food sources once they have located them.

They are mainly attracted to roses, magnolias, and maples. Since baby opossums are not capable of hunting amphibians or birds, they eat gumtree leaves and camellias.

Placing smelly and smelly plants like mints, daisies, and hakeas can keep opossums away from your garden. To keep possums off their property, some owners even go to the extent of placing dog hair.

Possums do not enter the territories of dogs and cats. Despite being afraid of cats possums eat cats, but this only happens when the cat is sluggish and easy to prey on.

What do baby possums eat?

Opossums are undeveloped when they are born and remain in the pouch of their mothers. When a young possum is old enough to hunt for itself, it emerges from its mother's pouch. Baby possums are not choosy eaters. They modify their diet based on what is available.

Insects: Possums in general love insects. Young opossums are especially fond of snails. They will also eat other insects like small cockroaches, slugs, and frogs.

Plants: Baby possums that are on their own do not drink milk or eat meat. So their best alternative plants. They eat a variety of plants. They feed on low-hanging fruits. They eat nuts and seeds as well.

Pet Food: Baby opossums can eat cat food and dog food and in rare cases even dead animals. It is more common in urban areas. They also go through garbage cans and camp next to easily available food sources. Possums also eat table scraps.

What fruit do possums eat?

Opossums are omnivores and tend to eat fruits from time to time. They like all fruits. Contrary to belief, possums do not pick their fruits based on the color. Instead, they pick them by their size.

Since large fruits are fleshy, they are their topmost preference. Possums mostly do not eat seeds from fruits, as they are not easily digestible. They do not just eat fruits but also other plant matter like barks, buds, and shoots.

In summer and fall, possums like to eat fruits. In winter, they eat flowers. The brushtail possum feeds on fruits throughout the year.

Some of their favorite fruits are pear, kiwi fruit, watermelon grapes, and berries. Apple, orange, banana, rockmelon, supplejack, kawakawa, carambola, tomatoes, honeydew, pawpaw, karaka, hinau, mahoe, and kanono are some of the other fruits on a possum's diet. Possums love munching sweet things like jams, marshmallows and peanut butter.

The only fruit that possums do not like is ferruginea. This fruit is avoided due to its high resin content. Possums also eat vegetables.

They can be seen munching on sweet potatoes, carrots, beans, and peas. Coriander, broccoli, parsley, and other herbs are also part of a possum's diet. Ringtail possums and brushtail possums eat roses, eucalyptus leaves, and fuchsias.

Possum Diet In Captivity

Possums do not do well in captivity. They can learn to bond with humans. It can be fun to have them around.

Possums are omnivores and opportunistic feeders. They are not picky either. They like to eat almost all the foods that are readily available in our household.

So feeding possums is an easy task. Since they are voracious eaters whose metabolism is slow, the risks of overfeeding are high. Monitoring the quantity of food and giving low-calorie foods is very important.

Possums can eat plant matter including barks, leaves and flowers, grains, seeds, and fruits. Depending on the age of the possums, you can also give snails, rats, mice, insects, slugs, crayfish, and eggs. Possums hunt almost all the free-roaming animals, especially snakes and frogs.

A healthy diet must include low-calorie meat, with moderate portions of vegetables and small portions of fruits. Fruits must only make up 20% or below of their diet.

Protein sources are also essential for possums. Feeding protein-rich foods once or twice a week is important. Possums, like the Tasmanian pygmy possums, drink nectar and eat pollen.

It is also important to know what foods to avoid. Never give possums pastry, bread, and cookies. They are all harmful.

Since raw meat can easily pass on parasites like the toxoplasma gondii it should also be avoided. These foods can also trigger other fatal infections and should be kept at bay at all times. Refrain from giving possums large seeds and cooked bones as they are not digestible and can cause diarrhea.

One of the common things that people do when they find possum joeys is to feed them milk. While this is done with good intentions, it is harmful to them. Possums cannot tolerate large amounts of lactose. It also reduces their development and, in worst cases, can also cause death.

Hence, all dairy products, including cheese and milk, should not be offered. Pure doses of calcium, vitamin A and Vitamin D are hazardous to possums. Junk foods can cause obesity and other health issues.

Did You Know...

Possums can even eat toxic leaves. Luckily they have a high tolerance for venom and are not harmed by the toxicity.

Opossums are slow and have poor eyesight, so they are not always successful while hunting snakes, frogs, and other amphibians. Hence, they are not picky and almost eat everything, even carrion.

Opossums are very useful as they help in pollination and keep other garden pests out of your property. Possums eat ticks and reduce the risk of contracting Lyme disease, which is passed on to humans by ticks. An opossum can kill 5,000 ticks in a season.

Contrary to belief, they are not dangerous animals.

Opossums can climb trees and even enter the water when they are trying to escape predators. The opossum is the only marsupial in America.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for what possums eat then why not take a look at what quails eat, or possum facts?