Oh, Possums!
The opossum might be snarly and a little bit scraggly, but she deserves our admiration.
When she makes her nighttime appearance—in a leafy corner of the yard, maybe, or along a power line slung across an alley—you’ll see her eyes first, two bright-greenish orbs, floating side by side in the gloom. Your own eyes will adjust to size up her lurking silhouette: two ratty ears, candy-corn teeth, a loaf of a body, and a spindly tail behind her. She might gape or hiss like she craves human flesh, sending shivers up your spine. At first glance, this lumbering night creature might seem more foe than friend. But look closer and take her in: a harmless opossum, in all her scruffy glory.
While the opossum has become a beloved internet meme—appearing as an ugly-cute comedian or an adorable garbage monster—in real life, she remains misunderstood, provoking fear or disgust when she should inspire wonder. Because the fundamental truth about the opossum is that she is a gentle survivor—a marsupial whose early relatives once waddled across a supercontinent, who tangles with snakes but harbors no ill will toward humans. You may be forgiven for disliking the look of the opossum, but never for disrespecting her.
First, let’s get a few things straight. Opossums do, in fact, play dead when threatened; they do not hang upside down by their tails. Dozens of different opossum species can be found in the Western Hemisphere, but only one lives here in North America. This is Didelphis virginiana—given name, Virginia opossum. Possums, sans O, do exist; furrier and slightly more squirrel-like than opossums, they live in Australia and were once thought to be the same as our Virginia opossum. They are not—but they are both marsupials. Experts believe that early relatives of the Virginia opossum waltzed over to Australia way back when the continents were joined, millions of years ago.
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2022/07/virginia-opossum-behavior-memes/670575/?utm_source=feed
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