Did you know that opossums do not like cold weather? While these creatures do not hibernate, they take special care to stay warm during winter. In warmer areas, they can even stay active year-round.
Understanding opossum behavior is the first step in identifying an opossum on your property. For example, what they eat, how cold they can tolerate and where they shelter are key to understanding their movements. Contact a wildlife control specialist if you suspect an opossum is on your property.
Do Opossums Hibernate?
Do opossums hibernate in the winter? The short answer is no. Opossums do not hibernate. However, they often den in warm places during winter, such as hollow trees and brush piles.
While opossums remain active all year long, their habitats change with the seasons. During the colder months, they seek shelter in enclosed areas, such as under decks or sheds, to stay warm.
A unique aspect of opossums is that they are both nocturnal and nomadic. They do not stay in one shelter for too long and are difficult to track because they move at night.
Due to this behavior, you may have opossums on your property long before you notice their presence. Contact a pest control specialist if you suspect an opossum is hiding around your home. An expert can help you identify possums versus opossums and control these pests.
What Do Opossums Eat?
Understanding opossum behaviors, such as what they eat, is helpful when it comes to identifying an opossum infestation on your property. Opossums are opportunistic eaters, so their diets contain many different foods.
For example, opossums eat insects, small rodents, fruits and vegetables, eggs, small birds, snails, slugs, dead animals, pet food and food scraps from garbage bins.
Their diverse diet often attracts them to your property, especially if they can easily access pet food, scraps, garden vegetables and more. When food is less abundant in winter, they will scavenge through bird feeders and compost piles.
Why are Opossums Attracted to Your Property?
The number one reason opossums are attracted to your property is because they can access a reliable food source. Since opossums are nomadic, they are constantly on the move, searching for food. A home that offers an abundance of options is particularly appealing to them.
Another reason opossums may seek out your property is the shelter it provides, especially in the winter months. Sheds, porches, shrubs, wood piles and hollowed-out trees offer ample shelter where they can rest and stay warm during the day.
One of the best ways to deter opossums from your property is to eliminate potential food and shelter sources. Keep a tight lid on your outdoor trash cans, bring pet food bowls inside at night and pick up any fallen fruit from your trees.
Keeping your lawn trim and neat can also eliminate places for them to shelter on your property. Trim back overgrown brush and vegetation, and clear away wood piles. Seal any holes or openings around your deck, porch or sheds.
Contact a local wildlife control service if you suspect an opossum on your property. They can also help you understand other pests you may have, like understanding what mice hate.
How Cold Can Opossums Tolerate?
Opossums are resilient and adaptable creatures. They survive cold temperatures by sheltering in warm and secure spots during the day. However, they have their limits. Their thin fur and hairless tails make them more sensitive to the cold than other animals.
It’s helpful to understand that opossums can tolerate cold temperatures as low as 19 degrees Fahrenheit. However, if the temperature drops much lower than this, they are at an extreme risk of frostbite.
To survive the cold weather, opossums do not hibernate, but they reduce their activity levels to conserve energy. They take shelter in warm spots to ride out cold snaps. Opossums hate extremely cold weather because it is dangerous for them and prevents them from being able to forage for food.
Opossums thrive year-round in warmer places. During a mild winter, they forage for food and maintain regular activity levels.
Homeowners in warmer climates should understand that they can encounter opossums on their properties at any point in the year. Contact a wildlife control specialist if you suspect an opossum is living on your property. An expert will identify where the opossum is hiding out and help you put preventative measures in place to help deter them from coming back to your property in the future.
How Long Will an Opossum Stay in One Spot?
Opossums are nomadic animals that typically only stay in one spot for a few days. However, the rules change when they find a spot that offers a reliable food source, water and shelter. In those cases, opossums will stay in one spot longer than usual before moving on.
This is especially true in the winter months when opossums need to spend more time sheltering from the cold weather. It’s harder for opossums to move around in extreme cold, so a safe and warm place to den is invaluable.
It’s helpful for homeowners to understand what opossum dens look like to tell when an opossum is seeking shelter on their property. Unlike other animals, opossums do not build their own dens. Instead, they seek shelter in existing structures and natural habitats.
For example, opossums hide in hollow trees, piles of leaves or debris, inside wood piles, within dense vegetation and under porches, decks and sheds. These animals may even den in burrows that were created and then abandoned by other animals. They choose these locations because they are enclosed and offer shelter from rain and cold weather.
While they don’t build their own shelters, they can make them more comfortable by lining them with leaves, grass and other soft materials. This provides more insulation, which is helpful during the winter months.
How to Spot Signs of an Opossum on Your Property
Opossums are difficult to track down because they are nocturnal creatures that move through the night, and they do not build obvious dens. They are also fairly quiet animals.
However, there are some telltale signs of opossums on your property. For example, you may hear them rustling around at night. They could be trying to get into your trash bins, pet food, vegetable garden and other areas where they can access food. During the daytime, you may also notice that these areas are disturbed.
You will likely spot opossum tracks and droppings before seeing them. Opossum feet have five toes, and their tracks resemble small handprints. Their droppings are typically between two and three inches long, and you may spot them near their food sources or dens.
Another common sign of opossum activity is missing pet food from outdoor bowls. Contact a wildlife control service if you notice any signs of an opossum on your property. You can also make your property less appealing to opossums by eliminating their potential food sources and shelter opportunities.
Opossums are not dangerous to humans, but they can create big messes, cause property damage and carry diseases.
Kick Opossums Off Your Property With Professional Assistance
Is an opossum wreaking havoc on your property? These nocturnal animals are scrappy and resilient, and their presence can cause property damage.
Understanding opossum behavior, such as how they operate during the winter, what they eat and where they shelter, is the first step to identifying the problem. The next step is to work with a wildlife control professional and implement prevention methods that help keep them away. They can also help you control other pests, like mice, and understand if mice make noise.
ABC Can Remove Unwelcome Visitors From Your Property
Most homeowners don’t want opossums living on their property. For effective wildlife removal, contact ABC Home & Commercial Services. Our professionals are highly trained and will be able to trap and remove any unwanted creatures on your property. We can also provide you with ongoing pest control to reduce the chances of any future pest problems.
