Virginia opossum in the context of "Carrion"

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⭐ Core Definition: Virginia opossum

The Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana), also known as the North American opossum, is a member of the opossum family found from southern Canada to northern Costa Rica, making it the northernmost marsupial in the world. Commonly referred to simply as the possum, it is a solitary nocturnal animal about the size of a domestic cat, and a successful opportunist.

Opossums are familiar to many North Americans as they frequently inhabit settled areas near food sources like trash cans, pet food, compost piles, gardens or housemice. Their slow, nocturnal nature and their attraction to roadside carrion make opossums more likely to become roadkill.

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👉 Virginia opossum in the context of Carrion

Carrion (from Latin caro 'meat'), also known as a carcass, is the decaying flesh of dead animals. Carrion may be of natural or anthropic origin (e.g. wildlife, human remains, livestock), and enters the food chain via different routes (e.g. animals dying of disease or malnutrition, predators and hunters discarding parts of their prey, collisions with automobiles).

Carrion is an important food source for large carnivores and omnivores in most ecosystems. Examples of carrion-eating animals include vultures, eagles, hyenas, Virginia opossum, Tasmanian devils, and coyotes. Many invertebrates, for example carrion beetles, burying beetles, blow-fly maggots, and flesh-fly maggots, also eat carrion. All of these animals, together with microbial decomposers, help to recycle nitrogen and carbon in animal remains.

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Virginia opossum in the context of Opossum

Opossums (/əˈpɒsəmz/) are members of the marsupial order Didelphimorphia (/daɪˌdɛlfɪˈmɔːrfiə/) endemic to the Americas. The largest order of marsupials in the Western Hemisphere, it comprises 126 species in 18 genera. Opossums originated in South America and entered North America in the Great American Interchange following the connection of North and South America in the late Cenozoic.

The Virginia opossum is the only species found in the United States and Canada. It is often simply referred to as an opossum; in North America, it is commonly referred to as a possum (/ˈpɒsəm/; sometimes rendered as 'possum in written form to indicate the dropped "o"). The Australasian arboreal marsupials of suborder Phalangeriformes are also called possums because of their resemblance to opossums, but they belong to a different order. The opossum is typically a nonaggressive animal and almost never carries the virus that causes rabies.

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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Carrion ← Opossum
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Opossum → Canada → Costa Rica → Marsupial → Nocturnal animal → Domestic cat → Opportunism → Compost → Carrion → Roadkill →