They seek shelter underground, in trees or anywhere in between. When frightened or harmed, opossums suddenly freeze and lie still as death. They have no control over this response, which could be said to paralyze them with fear or have evolved because almost any predator can outrun them. If left unharmed, a catatonic opossum will recover in roughly one to four hours. When the so-called Great American Interchange occurred with the closing of Central America around 3 million years ago, the opossum was pretty much the only marsupial from South America that successfully moved to and survived in the north.
This Bill Saves Wildlife in Crisis. Urge Congress to Support It. Learn More. Our beloved wildlife ambassador has been creating lifelong connections with nature for generations. Donate Take Action. Garden Habitats Wildlife Facts. Opossums don't build their own dens; therefore they often take shelter in abandoned animal burrows, hollow logs, brush piles, woodpiles, attics and other man-made structures.
Opossums are opportunistic omnivores that eat a wide variety of animal and plant matter. While they're mainly scavengers - feeding on dead animals and plant matter - they also love insects and occasionally hunt small animals like chicks and snakes. Though opossums aren't aggressive in nature, they are opportunistic and resourceful creatures that eat what they can find and take shelter where they see fit - even if it's inside your home.
It is important to identify signs of opossum damage early. Home Facts About Opossums. Camouflage is a well-known way for animals to protect themselves from predators, but perhaps no creature in the animal kingdom is as good at it as walking sticks.
More than 3, species of these insects exist across the world, and their stick-like appearance serves them well in hiding from potential predators. They are usually green or brown in color to blend in with the twigs they disguise themselves as, according to the National Wildlife Federation. They can be hard to the touch, like a stick or twig would be. And to help them blend in, they will sway in the wind just like the twigs on a tree would do.
These masters of camouflage have some competition in the animal kingdom when it comes to blending in with their environment. The patterns in the plumage of several owl species, including the great horned owl, provide excellent cover for sitting in a tree.
And many insects, lizards, frogs and snakes also have coloring that allows them to blend in rather than stand out. And our oceans are full of creatures — from fish to seahorses to crustaceans — that blend into their environment so as not to call attention to themselves.
Some animals protect themselves from predators by looking very similar to another animal, a practice called mimicry. Among the best known examples of this is viceroy and monarch butterflies, which look strikingly similar except for one black stripe viceroys have on their hind wings that monarchs do not have.
Both types of butterflies eat plants that contain noxious compounds that make them taste bitter to predators, according to Save Our Monarchs. This bitter taste keeps predators at bay, and in this case the butterflies get double the protection because predators will stay away from both monarchs and viceroys because of their similar appearance.
These butterflies are an example of Mullerian mimicry, in which two or more noxious animals have similar physical appearances as shared protection against predators of both animals. Another type of mimicry is called Batesian mimicry, which is when a non-toxic animal evolves to have a strikingly similar appearance to a toxic animal to protect it from predators.
This form of mimicry was first noticed among butterflies in the Amazon, according to PBS. Closer to home, Batesian mimicry is used by the non-venomous scarlet kingsnake, which looks so similar to the venomous coral snake that it can be difficult to differentiate between the two.
Both the scarlet kingsnake — which is completely harmless to humans — and the coral snake — which is deadly, although it rarely bites humans — have red, yellow and black bands. The difference is that the yellow and red bands are next to each other on a coral snake, while a black band always separates the yellow and red bands of a scarlet kingsnake, according to the Florida Museum.
This subtle distinction has given rise to a clever rhyme: Red touches yellow, kill a fellow. Red touches black, friend of Jack.
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