Opossums

One fact about this animal decides most of what follows, so it goes first. UF/IFAS Extension states that opossums do not dig burrows. They take shelter in what is already there, which means an opossum under a deck got in through an opening that already existed, and closing that opening is the whole job.

It also means that if your lawn has been dug up, the sources read for this page will not let us blame an opossum. Nebraska Extension gives a digging signature for two other animals and none for this one. That comparison is below.

What It Is

Alabama Cooperative Extension states that the opossum is the only marsupial, meaning pouched mammal, native to the United States, and names it the Virginia opossum, Didelphis virginiana. UF/IFAS Extension describes it as the only marsupial north of Mexico and the only native marsupial in the continental United States, and the Missouri Department of Conservation calls it North America’s only native marsupial. Nebraska Extension makes the point that matters for anyone who has just seen one: opossums are not rodents, but marsupials.

On size, two different measurements are in circulation and they are not a disagreement. UF/IFAS Extension gives a body length of 14 to 19 inches, with a tail length of 10 to 17 inches. The Missouri Department of Conservation and Kansas State University Extension both give a total length of 24 to 34 inches, which is body and tail together. Read that way the figures agree.

Weight is where the sources actually differ, and each figure is given here as its source states it. Kansas State University Extension and the Missouri Department of Conservation give 4 to 15 pounds. Alabama Cooperative Extension gives 4 to 13 pounds. Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control describes an animal about the size of a house cat at 4 to 14 pounds, and Nebraska Extension says opossums grow to the size of housecats and weigh around 10 pounds. Separately, UF/IFAS Extension gives a national average of 6 pounds for males and 4 pounds for females, and notes a trend toward smaller individuals in southern populations. That is an average rather than a range, so it sits alongside the others rather than against them.

Two more details from the sources. Alabama Cooperative Extension states that the opossum has about fifty teeth, more than most other mammals, and that it lives 1 to 3 years in the wild; UF/IFAS Extension gives the lifespan as 1 to 2 years in the wild and 3 to 4 years in captivity.

Range

Alabama Cooperative Extension states that opossums are native to Central America and the southern United States, and have expanded their range northward over the past 100 years. (as of July 18, 2022) UF/IFAS Extension states that they are continuing to expand their range north, and attributes it to a combination of climate change and human intervention, while noting the limit on it: opossums do not thrive in extremely cold or arid climates.

Nebraska Extension gives the clearest worked example of that expansion in a single state. Before the arrival of European settlers, it states, opossums lived only in Nebraska’s extreme southeastern corner; today they are common throughout eastern Nebraska, and in the Sandhills and Panhandle regions they are generally restricted to major waterways. The Missouri Department of Conservation describes them as abundant throughout that state and less abundant in the northwest and southeast regions.

On the scale an individual animal uses, UF/IFAS Extension states that home ranges vary greatly and have been recorded as 10 to 350 acres, and Alabama Cooperative Extension states that opossums are solitary creatures but are not territorial and may have overlapping home ranges.

When They Are Active

Nocturnal is the rule. Alabama Cooperative Extension states that opossums are nocturnal, preferring to forage at night rather than in the daytime; UF/IFAS Extension describes them as nocturnal and solitary; Nebraska Extension states that raccoons and opossums are nocturnal.

Alabama Cooperative Extension states the exception itself: even in the northernmost part of their range, opossums can be found in winter searching for food during the warmest part of the day. The Missouri Department of Conservation adds that opossums are active in winter, while raccoons are dormant or inactive. None of the sources read for this page treats a daytime sighting as a sign that anything is wrong with the animal.

What They Eat

Alabama Cooperative Extension puts it simply: opossums are opportunists and will eat almost anything. It states that most of their diet consists of animal matter, such as eggs, crustaceans, reptiles, amphibians, birds, small mammals and carrion, and that insects in particular are a staple food. UF/IFAS Extension describes opportunistic omnivores whose diets consist of fruits, nuts, seeds, insects, worms, eggs, frogs, snakes, small mammals, carrion, human garbage and the occasional farm chicken. Nebraska Extension ranks it: opossums are omnivores, but prefer insects, carrion and fruit. The Missouri Department of Conservation states that they prefer animal matter, including many types of insects, and carrion.

• Fruit. Alabama Cooperative Extension names persimmons, apples, plums, blackberries, hackberries, wild grapes and nuts. The Missouri Department of Conservation adds that they eat fruits particularly in fall and early winter.
• What brings them to a house. Alabama Cooperative Extension states that in urban and suburban settings, opossums scavenge garbage and bird seeds. The Missouri Department of Conservation states that they scavenge food from unsecured garbage cans and pet food from bowls left outdoors. Texas A&M AgriLife Extension states that opossums are omnivores that can become a nuisance when they eat pet food, fruit on trees, pecans, seeds in bird feeders and garbage in trash cans. (as of January 25, 2022)
• The other side of the ledger. The Missouri Department of Conservation states that opossums feed on many insects considered injurious by farmers, and Alabama Cooperative Extension describes their carrion feeding as acting as a cleanup crew. Alabama Cooperative Extension also addresses a common accusation directly, stating that predation on nests by opossums and other medium-sized mammals is not the cause of low game populations.

They Do Not Dig

This is the fact that separates an opossum problem from a skunk or a groundhog problem, and it is stated outright by the source.

UF/IFAS Extension states that opossums do not dig burrows, and that instead they take shelter in hollow logs, rockpiles, woodpiles, barns, abandoned buildings, burrows dug by gopher tortoises and other animals such as skunks, and even old squirrel nests. Nebraska Extension describes the same behavior from the other direction: while raccoons and opossums will climb or squeeze under or through a fence, they usually will avoid digging extensively to gain access.

Where that brings them into conflict with people is predictable. Alabama Cooperative Extension states that they sometimes attempt to den in attics or under porches, and lists attics, garages and crawl spaces as the access points to close. The Missouri Department of Conservation states that opossums prefer wooded areas mostly near streams, especially near farms, and Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control states that they are found in many different habitats from woodlands to highly developed residential areas.

Whose Damage Is It

Nebraska Extension states that signs found at the damage scene will help you identify the species causing damage, and gives the two contrasts that matter most.

• Digging. Nebraska Extension states that, “Unlike skunks, which create precise cone-shaped depressions when digging, raccoons will roll up or shred the sod in search of food.” It gives no digging signature for the opossum, which is consistent with the section above.
• Entry hole width. Nebraska Extension states that, “Opossums need an opening that is at least 3 inches wide, while raccoons need at least 4.” Both of those are Nebraska Extension’s comparisons between animals, quoted as they wrote them.
• Timing does not separate them. Nebraska Extension asks whether the damage occurred at night and answers that both animals are nocturnal, so timing alone will not tell you which one it was.
• Droppings. Nebraska Extension states that raccoon and opossum feces will generally be cat-sized.
• Tracks. The Missouri Department of Conservation describes the hind foot as handlike, with a thumb sticking out at a right angle that does not leave a claw print.

On how much damage to expect, Nebraska Extension states that opossums can damage lawns and gardens, scatter trash, invade buildings and injure livestock, and that indoor denning brings creating or enlarging entry holes and tearing insulation. Alabama Cooperative Extension is more measured about the usual case, stating that in these cases they usually are not a significant source of damage, and that they will occasionally take advantage of gardens and crops, particularly corn.

Control: Exclusion First

Because they do not dig their own way in, closing the openings is the method the sources support most directly. The measured specifications and the check that has to precede the last one are in this section together.

Before you close the last hole

Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control states that before completing the final seal on the last entry point, it is wise to make sure no animals are trapped inside. No source read for this page describes how to build a one-way door for an opossum, so none is described here.

The mesh, and how deep

• Crawl spaces. Nebraska Extension states that crawl spaces below sheds, porches and decks should be secured using 1 inch by half-inch galvanized hardware cloth.
• Burial depth and skirt. Nebraska Extension states to bury the mesh at least 4 inches below the soil and create a 12 to 18 inch skirt under the soil to discourage digging.
• Repair materials. Nebraska Extension names 10-gauge quarter-inch wire mesh, aluminum flashing, and solid half-inch wood or plywood.
• Vents and chimneys. Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control states that opossums can be excluded from buildings by covering foundation vents with slotted metal vent covers, and by using quarter-inch grid screening to cover attic vents and chimneys. It gives quarter-inch grid screening or solid metal flashing as the general answer.
• The whole list. Nebraska Extension states that homeowners should cap chimneys, keep structures in good repair, install mesh over vents, trench-screen decks, sheds and crawl spaces, and reduce potential food sources. Alabama Cooperative Extension states to close any access points to potential denning areas such as attics, garages and crawl spaces, and to remove any brushy areas or piles of wood and rocks around the yard.
• Fences. Nebraska Extension states that a single strand of electrical wire near the top of the fence protruding 3 inches outward on outrigger insulators will prevent access, and cautions that gardens and crops are more difficult to protect because of the climbing abilities of these two animals. It also states that “Raccoons, being stronger, are more difficult to exclude than opossums”, which is its comparison between the two animals, quoted as written.

Taking away the reasons to stay

• Nebraska Extension states that trash cans, preferably metal, should have tight-fitting lids that remain attached even if tipped over. The National Pesticide Information Center states to keep garbage in a can with a tight-fitting lid that cannot be opened by animals.
• Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control states that tight fitting lids should be kept on garbage cans, that pets should be fed during daylight hours with any leftovers removed immediately, that water bowls should be emptied or taken in at night, and that gardens should be frequently harvested and windfall fruit picked up.
• UF/IFAS Extension states it in one line: secure your garbage bins and do not leave pet food outside.

Control: Trapping

Everything in this section comes from one source, Nebraska Extension, and that source addresses raccoons and opossums together rather than opossums on their own. The figures are given here on that basis.

• Trap size. Nebraska Extension states that cage or box traps should be well built and have minimum sizes of 10 by 10 by 32 inches for single-door traps and 10 by 10 by 42 inches for two-door traps.
• Bait. Nebraska Extension states that effective baits include sardines, dry and moist cat food, table scraps and fish oil.
• The floor of the trap. Nebraska Extension states that some trappers recommend covering the trap floor with grass and soil to reduce an animal’s apprehension when entering the cage.
• A cover cloth. Nebraska Extension states that the cloth will protect the animal and bait from the elements.
• Handling. Nebraska Extension states that both animals can bite, scratch and harbor parasites such as fleas and ticks. The National Pesticide Information Center notes that someone with experience trapping and handling wildlife can be very helpful.

No source read for this page describes a trap feature as opossum-specific, and no source compares one trap against another. We do not publish an opossum product page.

Breeding and Pouch Young

Gestation is remarkably short and the sources are close to agreement on it. Alabama Cooperative Extension and UF/IFAS Extension both give 13 days; Kansas State University Extension and the Missouri Department of Conservation both give 12 or 13 days. Nebraska Extension states that partially-developed opossums are born 13 days after mating, then migrate to the female’s pouch to continue to grow for several more weeks.

Alabama Cooperative Extension states that, much like kangaroos, opossums give birth to relatively undeveloped young that complete development inside the mother’s marsupium, and that at birth the young weigh less than one hundredth of an ounce each and are about the size of a honeybee. UF/IFAS Extension states that females normally have 13 teats and that newborns unable to secure a nipple do not survive, that young are typically weaned at around 100 days, and that they increasingly leave the pouch and often ride atop the mother’s back.

On timing, Kansas State University Extension states that in Kansas breeding begins about the first of February, and the Missouri Department of Conservation states that breeding begins in early February with most litters born by the end of February. Nebraska Extension states that opossums mate twice a year, in mid-January through February and July through August. Kansas State University Extension states that the first litter is weaned in May and the female mates again, with the second litter weaned around mid to late September.

How many young is not agreed. UF/IFAS Extension gives an average of 7 to 8 per litter. Kansas State University Extension gives an average of nine, varying from five to 13. Nebraska Extension gives litters typically averaging 7 to 10 but which can include up to 17. How many litters a year is not agreed either. UF/IFAS Extension says usually one or two; Nebraska Extension says opossums mate twice a year; Alabama Cooperative Extension says most females can produce two litters in a year, one in winter and one in spring, although some may produce three. All of those figures are reported as their sources state them and none is preferred.

Playing Dead

The behavior is real, it is well described, and it is less common than its reputation. All three positions are given here.

• The Missouri Department of Conservation describes the opossum’s famous behavior of playing dead, or playing possum, as a defensive adaptation, and adds that opossums will hiss in conflicts with other animals or if cornered.
• UF/IFAS Extension states that opossums may play dead for up to four hours, and describes what it looks like: when they feel gravely threatened they may enter a catatonic state in which they lie stiff with their eyes open, drool saliva from their open mouths, and may defecate or excrete a putrid-smelling liquid from their anal glands.
• Alabama Cooperative Extension states that when threatened, opossums appear to go into a catatonic state — and then states that this method of defense is not the most common one practiced, and that most often, when confronted with danger, opossums try to escape. It adds that some opossums may gape and hiss rather than play dead.
• Nebraska Extension states that when frightened, opossums will often just play dead or will hunker down, baring their teeth in a menacing manner.

Disease

On rabies, the sources point the same way. The Louisiana Department of Health states that animals such as squirrels, hamsters, guinea pigs, gerbils, chipmunks, rats, mice, rabbits, hares and opossums are usually killed during an encounter with a rabid animal and therefore are not a source of infection. (as of June 2023) Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control includes rabies in its list of diseases opossums carry, and marks it as rare. Alabama Cooperative Extension states that opossums have a remarkable resistance to many viruses and rarely contract rabies, parvovirus, distemper or feline hepatitis, and UF/IFAS Extension states that opossums are nearly immune to rabies, and have very strong resistance to venomous snakes such as water moccasins and rattlesnakes.

On the wider disease picture the sources genuinely part company, and both sides are given here rather than only the reassuring one.

• Alabama Cooperative Extension says the reputation is overstated. It states that opossums often are believed to carry many diseases transferrable to humans and pets, and that in reality they have a remarkable resistance to many viruses.
• Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control publishes a long list. It states that opossums are carriers of many diseases: tuberculosis, relapsing fever, herpes virus, tularemia, salmonella, spotted fever, toxoplasmosis, coccidiosis, trichomoniasis, Chagas Disease, yellow fever, and rabies, which it marks as rare.

Both are inside the sources this page relies on, one a university extension service and one a county public-health agency, and neither is preferred here. What they do agree on is that rabies is rare.

Two specific conditions are named by sources and are recorded as they were stated. Alabama Cooperative Extension states that opossums do carry one type of parasite, Sarcocystis neurona, that can cause a serious disease known as equine protozoal myeloencephalitis, or EPM, in horses, and that they may also carry ticks, fleas, roundworms and other common parasites. Texas A&M AgriLife Extension states that opossums also carry murine typhus and can transmit the disease to people and pets. (as of January 25, 2022) Nebraska Extension states that both raccoons and opossums can bite, scratch and harbor parasites such as fleas and ticks, and advises handling carcasses with thick leather gloves.

Questions

Sources

Every factual claim above names the source it rests on, in the sentence that makes it or in the text immediately adjacent to it, and every source named is listed below. Framing, ordering and emphasis are our own judgement and are not a finding of any source. Where sources give different figures for the same measurement, all are reported and attributed rather than averaged.

1. Alabama Cooperative Extension System (Mark D. Marable). Virginia Opossum: Our Only Native Marsupial. July 18, 2022. Accessed August 22, 2026. https://www.aces.edu/blog/topics/forestry-wildlife/virginia-opossum-our-only-native-marsupial/
2. UF/IFAS Extension, University of Florida (Hance Ellington). Wildlife of Florida Factsheet: Virginia Opossum, WEC426. Accessed August 22, 2026. https://ask.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/uw471
3. Nebraska Extension, University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Controlling Raccoon and Opossum Damage. Accessed August 22, 2026. https://cms.unl.edu/ianr/extension/wildlife/sites/unl.edu.ianr.extension.wildlife/files/media/file/controlling-raccoon-opossum-damage.pdf
4. Kansas State University Extension Wildlife Management. Opossum. Accessed August 22, 2026. https://www.wildlife.k-state.edu/species/opossum/
5. Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. Managing Opossum Damage (publication catalog entry). January 25, 2022. Accessed August 22, 2026. https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/asset-external/managing-opossum-damage/
6. Missouri Department of Conservation. Virginia Opossum field guide. Accessed August 22, 2026. https://mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/virginia-opossum
7. Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control. Managing Opossum Problems. Accessed August 22, 2026. https://animalcare.lacounty.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/029450_L_ELivingwithwildlife-Opossum2.3.15.pdf
8. Louisiana Department of Health, Office of Public Health. Rabies summary. June 2023. Accessed August 22, 2026. https://ldh.la.gov/assets/oph/Center-PHCH/Center-CH/infectious-epi/VetInfo/Rabies/RabiesSummary_6_2023_ab.pdf
9. National Pesticide Information Center, Oregon State University. Problem Wildlife in the Garden and Yard. Accessed August 22, 2026. https://npic.orst.edu/pest/wildyard.html