4 NEW-YORK FAUNA. 



black at the tips, with the long white hairs. On the back, and on the legs, this color be- 

 comes of a deeper hue, with various shades of intensity, sometimes even approaching to 

 black. Ears black at base, the borders white. 



Length of head and body, 15' 0-20*0. 



Length of tail, IO-O-12'O. 



Weight, 10-14 lbs. 



The Opossum is a nocturnal animal, moving with great agility among the branches of trees, 

 and using his tail as a means of support, in the same way that it is employed by the members 

 of the Family Cebidcz, or Monkeys of South America. On the ground his movements are 

 clumsy and slow, and he appears to depend more upon cunning than upon strength or activity 

 for the means of escape. When surprised on the ground, he compresses himself into the 

 smallest possible space, and remains perfectly quiet. If discovered, and even handled in this 

 state, it still counterfeits death, and takes the first opportunity to effect its escape. From 

 this and other traits of cunning, has arisen the local phrase of " playing possum," to designate 

 any adroit cheat. 



The singular and anomalous organization of this animal, and its consequent peculiarities of 

 reproduction, have long excited much attention among scientific inquirers. The young are 

 found in the external abdominal sac, firmly attached to a teat in the form of a small gelati- 

 nous body, not weighing more than a grain. It was for a long time believed that there 

 existed a direct passage from the uterus to the teat, but this has been disproved by dissection. 

 Another opinion is, that the embryo is excluded from the uterus in the usual manner, and 

 placed by the mother to the teat ; and a third, that the embryo is formed where it is first 

 found. Whether this transfer actually takes place, and, if so, the physiological considera- 

 tions connected with it, still remain involved in great obscurity. 



I do not find with whom the Latin specific name originated. It is usually attributed to 

 Pennant, who, in his History of Quadrupeds, calls it the Virginia Opossum, and refers to 

 Linneus under the name of Didelphis marsupialis. In Gmelin, it stands as Didelphis opos- 

 sum. 



The Opossum is an inhabitant of the temperate regions of North America. Although it 

 is abundant in New-Jersey, I have never seen it in this State, but have heard that it has 

 been noticed in the southern counties on the west side of the River Hudson, and it will pro- 

 bably be found in the western counties. I am not aware that it has ever been observed east of 

 the Hudson. It inhabits chiefly wooded districts, and, as might be inferred from its struc- 

 ture, passes most of its life on trees. It feeds on birds and their eggs, on wild fruits, espe- 

 cially the persimon (Diospyros virginiana.) It is an excellent article of food, resembling in 

 flavor that of a sucking pig. When pressed by hunger, it occasionally prowls round the 

 barnyard, and commits ravages among the poultry. Its westerly distribution extends to the 

 Pacific, as it has been found in California, and it is asserted to be common in Mexico, and 

 inhabits all the intertropical regions ; but it is possible that it may have been confounded with 

 two other closely allied species found in South America. 



