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Normally breeding only once a year in the autumn, the gestation period is 13 - 18 days after which time the blind, naked young travel up into the pouch where they remain for approximately 120 - 130 days, vacating the pouch completely by 200 days.
 Possums can become a general nuisance around homes and other buildings living in our roof space.
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Power poles and trees! - Possums cannot tell the difference, often causing massive blackouts and personal electrocution.
It was estimated in 1993 that there 70 million possums in NZ. No one knows how many are here now but it was recently estimated that the real number now in NZ is closer to 30 million.
Like the kangaroo, this unique mammal has an abdominal pouch for carrying her young for approximately 3 months.
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Opossums diplay a repulsive, musk like odour.
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The opossum is 2-3 feet long with white to yellowish head and pink nose, black eyes and bluish black, naked ears.
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Adults are light-grey, long haired and about the size of a large cat weighing 4-15 lbs.
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They have a long scaly tail, black at its base, grading to yellow-white or pink for the rest of its length.
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The average number of young is 6, but as many as 13 may be born.
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They prefer to live in wooded areas, near streams.
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They also prefer hollow logs, under buildings and decks, in garages, trash heaps, or cavities in hollow trees to set up home.
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They are shy and secretive animals and seldom seen because it is abroad mostly at night.
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Most often observed along highways in the glare of automobile headlights as it feeds on animals killed by traffic.
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Individuals spend most of their lives within about 40 acres .
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When pursued Opossums often climb trees or brush heaps in an attempt to escape.
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The animal rolls over on it's side, shuts its eyes becoming limp when it is frightened.
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The "play possum" with it's heartbeat slowing down to the appearance of death.This is a reaction is a nervous shock, the opossum is able to recover.
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heir diet consists of fish, birds, mammals, crustaceans, insects, mushrooms, fruits, grass, eggs and dead animals.
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Possums destroy native flora and fauna found in our native natural habitat.
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More than 70 New Zealand native trees and shrubs form an integral part of the possums diet with numerous other ferns, vegetables, fruits, grains and grasses topping off their menu.
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Possums may digest in excess of 21,000 tonnes of our forests and pasture daily. Possums are very selective browsers and often return again and again to the same trees and shrubs, stripping them completely of all new growth shoots and fruit often to the stage where the tree will simply die.
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Possums are highly susceptible to the disease bovine Tb progressing rapidly. Disease is spread by infected possums excreting large quantities of the bacteria. If they are feeding on pasture where cattle or deer also feed there is a great risk of possums further spreading the disease creating a major threat to New Zealand milk and beef exports.
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Nocturnal, omnivorous marsupials, possums sleep during the day, eat both plants and small creatures and have a pouch to keep there young in.
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Possum dens are normally found in thickets of gorse, flax, scrub and among the roots of trees. Occasionally in the forks of trees, but mainly close to ground level. When travelling, possums dislike dense undergrowth and do not like wet feet.
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