Our quirky little native animals…

Some Australian native animals are such quirky little creatures. They all have their own individual traits that define them.
Ringtail possums almost always have two young ones in the pouch. The white tips on their tails help identify their species. When a call comes to the WILVOS 5441 6200 Hotline about a ringtail possum joey that has been found, we always have to advise people to look for a second sibling. Very rarely there are three. When rearing ringtails they really do dislike being alone.
With the cooler weather approaching, possums are even more inclined to snuggle up with others. Sometimes one may be on the ‘’outer’’ when rearing a colony of young ringtails. In my bunch of five youngsters there was one that always slept in her own “pouch’’. Yesterday morning I moved them from their large aviary outside to a small one on the patio, as I wanted to add some more climbing branches to their accommodation. It was also a good time to remove the prior nights foliage and clean and refill water dishes, without a possum wanting to help!
When I went to the small cage on wheels to return the possums to their upgraded abode, they had all managed to squeeze into one pouch suspended in the top corner. All I could see at first were tails hanging out – until one little face appeared. How cute they are! They are used to being surrounded by foliage so they were probably very happy to get back into their aviary habitat.
Australians are so lucky to have so many unique, fascinating native animals. They are so often taken for granted.
Donna Brennan Wildlife Volunteers Assoc Inc (WILVOS) PO Box 4805 Sunshine Coast Mail Centre Q 4560 PH 5441 6200 www.wilvos.org.au