114 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 



motion. The one tiling' I want to impress on yon is, that in order to 

 .sneceed, a warden nuist regard his work as a profession, must realize 

 that it demands unremitting attention and study, and that it is essen- 

 tial for him to keep fully abreast of the times. 



THE TENNESSEE POSSUM HAS ARRIVED IN CALIFORNIA, 



By Joseph Grinnell. 

 Contribution from tlie Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California. 



On February 25, 1914, there were received at the Museum otf Verte- 

 brate Zoology of the University of California two live possums {Didel- 

 pJiis virginiana of scientific parlance) (see fig 29). These were kept 

 alive at the museum a few days and then killed and preserved as scien- 

 tific specimens, these now bearing the museum numbers 20799 and 

 20800. 



The circumstance of particular interest was that the animals were 

 captured wild here in California, where possums were never known 

 to have been native. They were secured and sent to us by Deputy Fish 



Fig. 29. — A Tennessee possum caught near San Jose in February, 1914. This 

 animal is becoming well established in Santa Clara County, where several escaped 

 from captivity about four years ago. 



and Game Commissioner I. L. Koppel, of San Jose. The exact locality 

 of capture was on the Wade Ranch on the banks of the Guadalupe Creek, 

 near Agnew, Santa Clara County, where they were taken February 5 

 and 23, 1914. 



At our recjuest, Mr. Koppel has made extensive inquiries in regard 

 to the occurrence of possums in the vicinity of San Jose. According 

 to Mr. Koppel 's findings there have been at least two cases of importa- 

 tion and liberation, both "about four years ago." Mr. J. R. Kocher, a 

 jeweler in San Jose, residing at Tenth and San Antonio streets, 

 imported seven from Jackson County, Tennessee. Two of these got 

 away at his residence; the other five he sent to a negro caterer in San 

 Jose, by the name of Jake Overton. These were kept in a coop at 856 



