St. Francis I am not...

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ZooMom

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Ann M said:
opossum_in_tree_closeup.jpg



We however have the real thing - possums spelt as possum! :p

possum_baby.jpg


Ann, that top pic looks like a possum...but the bottom one doesn't. Are those what's called 'bush babies'? Or maybe it's shrews...?:scratch:
 
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Ann M

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ZooMom said:
Ann, that top pic looks like a possum...but the bottom one doesn't. Are those what's called 'bush babies'? Or maybe it's shrews...?:scratch:

The top pic was your opossum, the bottom was our possum.

This is a bush baby (which I actually have to look up - apparently they are African)

images


And this is a shrew ( and I know they are part of the rodent family already :eek: )

images


Our possum is a marsupial, not a rodent :)
 
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holyorders

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I am going to gross everyone out now.


Read this:

HISTORY
[size=-1]The opossum is often referred to as 'possum by many people, particularly those living in the southern states where the opossum is particular common. They are often mentioned in folklore and other stories, resulting in many interesting but common misperceptions. One is the belief that the male opossum breeds the female through her nose and then she sneezes the young into the pouch! This tale came about because of the unusual bifurcated or forked penis of the male opossum. Opossums are sometimes trapped for their fur, and in some areas of the south, opossums are still relished for their meat. Since opossums often live close to man, people sometimes encounter them as they raid backyard garbage cans, food left out for domestic pets, or even bird feeders. Most folks are probably more familiar with a dead opossum rather than a live one since many of them are killed along our highways as they attempt to cross or as they feed on other road killed animals. The brain case of the opossum is rather small in comparison to other mammals of a similar size and it is often reputed to be a rather dim-witted animal. While lacking in so called "intelligence", the opossum is nevertheless an interesting and very successful animal.[/size]


:sorry: :o :eek: :eek: :eek: :sick: ^_^
 
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Ann M

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stray bullet said:
I've walked near a few skunks before, they're nice- much nicer than polar bears or wolverines.

I think the wolverine, being about five times as big as the Taz devil and twice as crazy, would easily take him :)

Twice as crazy? Bah humbug!! He's got nothing on my little devil. I don't see a cartoon wolverine out there, do you? :p

And that lack of size can come in really handy when you're going in for the kill.
 
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Ann M

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Q. How strong are their jaws?
A. In absolute terms, there is no good measurement because you never know how hard they are biting. That applies to most animals but we do know the relative strength. Devils have jaws of biting power as strong as a dog about 4 times their weight. So a 10 kg devil has as powerful a bite as a 40 kg dog. In this respect they are very similar to hyenas, particularly the spotted hyena

Q. What do they normally eat?
A. Devils seem to eat any meat that is available. This includes birds, fish, even invertebrates such as moths and tadpoles, frogs and reptiles, and other mammals such as wallabies, echindas, platypus, wombats; in fact almost anything that they might find. They do have preferences. Devils seem to very much like wombat. This is probably related to the rich fat content of the food. This is because not as much has to be eaten for the same calorie count. What is normally eaten generally reflects what is available. What is available does not always reflect abundance because some very common food might be very hard to get whereas some rare food might be very easy to get. In wilderness areas where there is not much carrion, devils hunt a lot. Small ones hunt moths, tadpoles, frogs, ground birds, anything they can catch. The larger ones hunt correspondingly larger prey - wallaby joeys, wallabies, even wombats. There are records of adult devils catching adult wombats. Any incapacitated animal trapped injured sick is likely to be killed even if several times the size of devils. Most predators work like that. Animals are killed mainly to keep them safe or still while being eaten.

Q. Do they eat stock such as lambs and sheep?
A. In some areas, particularly farm land, much already dead stock is eaten. Generally dead cows can only have small bits eaten - the udder, the mouth, the anus - because the skin is too thick for devils. Whole sheep can be eaten except for the large bones. Any small stock like sheep or lambs that are injured or incapacitated may be killed and eaten. New born lambs are sometimes at risk. If sheep have twins or triplets, weak members of the litters may be especially vulnerable. Poultry that roosts on the ground is also vulnerable. Most healthy stock is perfectly safe.
 
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