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THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



OPOSSUM, VIRGINIA OPOSSUM (Di- 



delphis virginiana and its subspecies) 



The opossums are the American representa- 

 tives of the ancient order of Marsupials — a 

 wonderfully varied group of mammals now 

 limited to America and Australasia. Through- 

 out the order the young are born in an embry- 

 onic condition and are transferred to teats 

 located in an external pocket or pouch in the 

 skin of the abdomen, where they complete their 

 development. The kangaroos are among the 

 most striking members of this group. 



Numerous species of opossums are known, 

 all peculiar to America and distributed from 

 the eastern United States to Patagonia. The 

 Virginia opossum, the largest of all the spe- 

 cies, is characterized by its coarse hair, pig- 

 like snout, naked ears, and long, hairless, pre- 

 hensile tail. Its toes are long, slender, and so 

 widely spread that its footprints on the muddy 

 border of a stream or in a dusty trail show 

 every toe distinctly, as in a bird track, and are 

 unmistakably different from those of any other 

 mammal. 



This is the only species of opossum occur- 

 ring in the United States, where it occupies all 

 the wooded eastern parts from eastern New 

 York, southern Wisconsin, and eastern Ne- 

 braska south to the Gulf coast and into the 

 tropics. It has recently been introduced in 

 central California. Although scarce in the 

 northern parts of its range, it is abundant and 

 well known in the warmer Southern States. 



These animals love the vicinity of water, and 

 are most numerous in and about swamps or 

 other wet lowlands and along bottom-lands 

 bordering streams. They have their dens in 

 hollow trees, in holes under the roots of trees, 

 or in similar openings where they may hide 

 away by day. Their food consists of almost 

 everything, animal or vegetable, that is edible, 

 including chickens, which they capture in noc- 

 turnal raids. 



The Virginia opossums have from 5 to 14 

 young, which at first are formless, naked little 

 objects, so firmly attached to the teats in the 

 mother's pouch that they can not be shaken 

 loose. Later, when they attain a coating of 

 hair, they are miniature replicas of the adults, 

 but continue to occupy the pouch until the 

 swarming family becomes too large for it. 

 The free toes of opossums are used like hands 

 for grasping, and the young cling firmly to the 

 fur of their mother while being carried about 

 in her wanderings. 



They are rather slow-moving, stupid animals, 

 which seek safety by their retiring nocturnal 

 habits and by non-resistance when overtaken 

 by an enemy. This last trait gave origin to 

 the familiar term "playing possum,"' and is 

 illustrated by their habit of dropping limp and 

 apparently lifeless when attacked. Despite this 

 apparent lack of stamina, their vitality is extra- 

 ordinary, rendering them difficult to kill. 



While hunting at daybreak, I once encoun- 

 tered an unusually large old male opossum on 

 his way home from a night in the forest. 

 When we met, he immediately stopped and 



stood with hanging head and tail and half- 

 closed eyes. I walked up and, after watching 

 him for several minutes without seeing the 

 slightest movement, put my foot against his 

 side and gave a slight push. He promptly fell 

 flat and lay limp and apparently dead. I then 

 raised him and tried to put him on his feet 

 again, but his legs would no longer support 

 him, and I failed in other tests to obtain the 

 slightest sign of life. 



The opossum has always been a favorite 

 game animal in the Southern States, and fig- 

 ures largely in the songs and folk-lore of the 

 southern negroes. In addition, its remarkable 

 peculiarities have excited so much popular in- 

 terest that it has become one of the most 

 widely known of American animals. 



RACCOON (Procyon lotor and its sub- 

 species) 



Few American wild animals are more widely 

 known or excite more popular interest than 

 the raccoon. It is a short, heavily built animal 

 with a club-shaped tail, and with hind feet that 

 rest flat on the ground, like those of a bear, 

 and make tracks that have a curious resem- 

 blance to those of a very small child. Its front 

 toes are long and well separated, thus permit- 

 ting the use of the front feet with almost the 

 facility of a monkey's hands. 



Raccoons occupy most of the wooded parts 

 of North America from the southern border 

 of Canada to Panama, with the exception of 

 the higher mountain ranges. In the United 

 States they are most plentiful in the South- 

 eastern and Gulf States and on the Pacific 

 coast. Under the varying climatic conditions 

 of their great range a number of geographic 

 races have developed, all of which have a close 

 general resemblance in habits and appearance. 



They everywhere seek the wooded shores of 

 streams and lakes and the bordering lowland 

 forests and are expert tree-climbers, com- 

 monly having their dens in hollow trees, often 

 in cavities high above the ground. In such re- 

 treats they have annually from four to six 

 young, which continue to frequent this retreat 

 until well grown, thus accounting for the num- 

 bers often found in the same cavity. Although 

 tree-frequenting animals, the greater part of 

 their activities is confined to the ground, espe- 

 cially along the margins of water-courses. 

 While almost wholly nocturnal in habits, they 

 are occasionally encountered abroad during the 

 day. 



Their diet is extraordinarily varied, and in- 

 cludes fresh-water clams, crawfish, frogs, tur- 

 tles, birds and their eggs, poultry, nuts, fruits, 

 and green corn. When near water they have 

 a curious and unique habit of washing their 

 food before eating it. Their fondness for 

 green corn leads them into frequent danger, 

 for when bottom-land cornfields tempt them 

 away from their usual haunts raccoon hunting 

 with dogs at night becomes an especially fa- 

 vored sport. 



Raccoons are extraordinarily intelligent ani- 

 mals and make interesting and amusing pets. 



