Plate 036 · raiding a nest along a branch IdentificationFive marks on the plate
- 1White ears in adults: the key mark of the species.
- 2White face with black stripes one through each eye and one on the crown.
- 3Long pink snout with dark whiskers.
- 4Grizzled grey coat with long white-tipped guard hairs.
- 5Two-tone gripping tail black at the base, white toward the tip.
Easily confused with Lutrine OpossumLutreolina crassicaudataSmaller, long-bodied, cinnamon-coloured, with short ears. Mouse opossumThylamys spp.Mouse-sized, with a dark mask around the eyes. 036 / 100 · MAMMALS · DIDELPHIDAELEAST CONCERN White-eared Opossum
Didelphis albiventris
Comadreja overa · White-eared possum
The largest marsupial in Tucumán. Females carry their young in a pouch and later on their backs. It climbs with a gripping tail and eats almost anything, from fruit to eggs, so it lives both in the forest and in town gardens.
- Length
- c. 60 – 90 cm with tail
- Weight
- 0.5 – 2.5 kg
- Young
- c. 4 – 12 per litter
- Altitude
- up to c. 2,000 m
- Marsupial
- Prehensile tail
- Omnivore
- Nocturnal
Altitude rangeFrom forest to back yards
Usual Common throughout the foothills and montane forest, and in towns and villages. It becomes scarce in cold high forest.
FoodA true opportunist
- Insects and larvaeyear-round staple
- Fruitwild and cultivated
- Eggs and nestlingsof birds
- Rodentsand other small vertebrates
- Carrion and scrapsnear houses
Its diet shifts with the season: more insects in summer, more fruit in autumn.
BehaviourA night climber
J F M A M J J A S O N D Young in the pouchYoung riding on the back - Young on board. Born tiny, they grow in the pouch and later ride clinging to the mother’s fur.
- Gripping tail. Used as a fifth hand when climbing and to carry leaves to its den.
- Nocturnal. By day it rests in tree holes, among roots or under roofs.
Where to look in Tucumán- Sierra de San Javier
- Reserva Experimental Horco Molle
- Parque Provincial La Florida
- El Siambón
- Tafí del Valle (RP 307)