14 The Opossum 



brown or black; intermingled is a liberal anaount of 

 pure white hairs. The brain cavity is small, but the 

 senses of sight and smell are well developed. 



The opossum, although upon the whole a stupid 

 animal, has one very clever habit, when attacked it 

 simulates death most successfully. At such times the 

 eyes are usually closed, the muscles are rigid, and 

 no amount of rough handling will provoke any signs 

 of life, until an opportunity for escape presents itself, 

 when it will make all the haste of which a slow moving 

 opossum is capable. The most effectual method of 

 reviving the seemingly lifeless animal is to drop it 

 into a pool of water. The shock of this unexpected 

 procedure is apparently too much for it, and it speedily 

 seeks the shore. The immersion usually ends the 

 "playing 'possum," for it will not readily try the 

 stratagem again. This art has probably saved many 

 opossums from destruction by other animals, but the 

 "coon" is fully up to the trick, and few deceiving 

 opossums escape him. I have found the ruse of 

 "playing 'possum" to be specific rather than general 

 among the species. Those that are partly tamed seem 

 never to practice it. 



The home of the opossum may be in a hollow tree, 

 a crevice in the rocks, or under a building. The 

 hollow tree, however, seems to be preferred. The 



