by Judy Evans

Created on: May 11, 2010

Australia has many species of possums. The majority belong to the Genus Pseudocheirus. The Common Ringtail Possum goes by the scientific name of Pseudocheirus peregrinus. Pseudo-cheirus being Greek for ‘false-hand’, and peregrinus Latin for ‘pilgrim’ or ‘alien’.

Range
The common ringtail possum is found in most states of Australia viz. Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.

Habitat
The common ringtail possum is not very fussy about its habitat and can be found in rainforests, eucalypt forests, suburban gardens, coastal areas and woodlands with shrubby vegetation. They may take up residence in the rooves of houses.

Description
The common ringtail possum has grey-brown fur. There are white patches behind the eyes and the belly is cream-coloured. The juveniles are a more reddish-brown. The long tail has a distinctive white tip. The ‘tip’ is about 25% of the total length. The common ringtail possum has a total length of about 60 to 70cm with the head and body measuring 30 to 35cm and the tail equalling that length. The adult weighs around one kilogram.

The second and third digits of the back feet are fused and this helps in grooming. The first two digits of the forefeet are opposable as an aid to climbing. The tail is prehensile and is used as an extra limb to help the animal climb and to carry nesting material.

Behaviour
The common ringtail possum is nocturnal and has good night vision. It is also arboreal and very social. It lives in a family group which generally consists of a male, several females and the previous year’s juveniles. These groups tend to nest and forage together.

It also practises coprophagia which means it consumes its own faeces. By this means it obtains maximum nourishment from the food it consumes. This behaviour is also seen in some rabbits.

The common ringtail possum builds a nest or drey in a hollow tree or in dense vegetation. A pair (male and female) both contribute to the nest, carrying grass and shredded vegetation in their tails. The drey is ball-shaped and about 30cm in diameter. They are well adapted to living in suburbia or even in cities.

Nutrition
Their diet consists mainly of leaves but they also eat blossoms, fruit and nectar. Citified possums often develop a taste for rose buds. They are one of the few marsupials that can tolerate eucalypt leaves as a major part of their diet.

Reproduction
As this creature is a marsupial, the baby is about the size of a jellybean and claws its way instinctively to the pouch. Two young are normally reared in a litter. The new babies are naked and blind. They remain in the pouch for about four months then both parents will care for the young and carry them on their backs until, at six months of age, the young are fully weaned. This is the only species where the male helps raise the juveniles. The young become adult at eighteen months of age and then leave the group to form new family groups.

Threats
While the ringtail possum is safe in the trees, once they come to ground they have a host of predators including dingoes, quolls, goannas and foxes. Increased human development and encroachment on their native habitat areas puts increasing pressure on the animals. Cars, powerlines and domestic cats and dogs account for many fatalities.

Status
The common ringtail possum is classified as ‘vulnerable’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Sources:
http://www.ozanimals.com/wildlife/Mammal/Possums,Gli ders.html
http://www.lcrtp.com.au/environment_and_awards/Ringt ail%20Possum.pdf

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