Summary ²

They are an introduced wild species, there are no restrictions on hunting but the population seems to be stable despite the annual killing of the animals in the thousands. In addition, in New Zealand it is a host for the highly contagious bovine tuberculosis. The Department of Conservation controls possum numbers in many areas via the aerial dropping of highly toxic 1080 (sodium monofluoroacetate) laced bait.

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Tony Wills, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Tony Wills
2. Adapted by Tony Wills from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_brushtail_possum

More Info

• iNaturalist NZ taxon page
• Animal Diversity Web
• ASM Mammal Diversity Database
• Atlas of Living Australia
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• iNaturalist Mammal Working Group
• VertNet

iNaturalist NZ Map