Possums Are From Australia

(Opossums Are From South America)

Despite the similarity in name, the 60+ "Opossums" from South America and the 20+ "Possums" from Australia are very different. Opossums received their name in 1612 from Captain John Smith of the Jamestown colony in Virginia. The word came from the Cherokee Indian name for the American animal. Possums received their name in 1770 from Captain Cook's botanist Sir Joseph Banks. He described an Australian common ringtail possum as "an animal of the Opossum tribe" based on their similar appearance. However, they are not closely related biologically. They are separated by 2 continents and 70+ million years.

The possums are small to mid-sized, nocturnal, omnivorous, mostly arboreal and generally brown or gray. In the Australian ecosystem their place is roughly similar to squirrels in the northern hemisphere. The 1st toe on hind feet is opposable, and the 2nd and 3rd toes are fused except for claws at the tip used for grooming. There are several types of possums, including possums, gliders, the triok and cuscus.

Genus Acrobates - Feather-tail Gliders
Genus Burramys - Mountain Pygmy Possum
Genus Cercartetus - Pygmy Possums
Genus Dactylopsila - Striped Possum
Genus Distoechurus - Feather-tail Possum
Genus Gymnobelideus - Leadbeater's Possum
Genus Hemibelideus - Lemuroid Ringtail Possum
Genus Petaurus - Gliders
Genus Petauroides - Greater Glider
Genus Petropseudes - Rock Ringtail Possum
Genus Phalanger - Southern Common Cuscus
Genus Pseudocheirus - Ringtail Possums
Genus Spilocuscus - Common Spotted Cuscus
Genus Tarsipes - Honey Possum
Genus Trichosurus - Brush-tail Possum
Genus Wyulda - Scaly-Tailed Possum

Acrobatidae

Feathertail Gliders

Acrobates pygmaeus	Feathertail Glider
Distoechurus pennatus	Feathertail Possum

Back to Top

Burramyidae

Pygmy Possums

Burramys parvus	Mountain Pygmy Possum
Cercartetus caudatus	Long-tailed Pygmy Possum
Cercartetus concinnus	Western Pygmy Possum
Cercartetus lepidus	Little Pygmy Possum
Cercartetus nanus	Eastern Pygmy Possum

Back to Top

Petauridae

Mostly Gliders

Dactylopsila megalura	Great-tailed Triok
Dactylopsila palpator	Long-fingered Triok
Dactylopsila tatei	Tate's Triok
Dactylopsila trivirgata	Striped Possum
Gymnobelideus leadbeateri	Leadbeater's Possum
Petaurus abidi	Northern Glider
Petaurus australis	Yellow-bellied Glider
Petaurus breviceps	Sugar Glider
Petaurus gracilis	Mahogany Glider
Petaurus norfolcensis	Squirrel Glider

Back to Top

Phalangeridae

Brushtail Possums and Cuscuses

Ailurops ursinus	Bear Cuscus
Phalanger carmelitae	Mountain Cuscus
Phalanger lullulae	Woodlark Cuscus
Phalanger matanim	Telefomin Cuscus
Phalanger orientalis	Gray Cuscus
Phalanger ornatus	Moluccan Cuscus
Phalanger pelengensis	Peleng Island Cuscus
Phalanger rothschildi	Obi Island Cuscus
Phalanger sericeus	Silky Cuscus
Phalanger vestitus	Stein's Cuscus
Spilocuscus maculatus	Common Spotted Cuscus
Spilocuscus rufoniger	Black-spotted Cuscus
Strigocuscus celebensis	Dwarf Cuscus
Strigocuscus gymnotis	Ground Cuscus
Trichosurus arnhemensis	Northern Brushtail Possum
Trichosurus caninus	Mountain Brushtail Possum
Trichosurus vulpecula	Common / Silver-Gray Brushtail Possum
Wyulda squamicaudata	Scaly-tailed Possum

Back to Top

Pseudocheiridae

Mostly Ringtailed Possums

Hemibelideus lemuroides	Lemuroid Ringtail Possum
Petauroides volans	Greater Glider
Petropseudes dahli	Rock Ringtail Possum
Pseudocheirus canescens	Daintree River Ringtail Possum
Pseudocheirus caroli	Weyland Ringtail Possum
Pseudocheirus cinereus	Daintree Ringtail Possum
Pseudocheirus forbesi	Moss-forest Ringtail Possum
Pseudocheirus herbetensis	Herbert River Ringtail Possum
Pseudocheirus mayeri	Pygmy Ringtail Possum
Pseudocheirus occidentalis	Western Ringtail Possum
Pseudocheirus peregrinus	Common Ringtail Possum
Pseudocheirus schlegeli	Arfak Ringtail Possum
Pseudochirops albertisii	d'Albertis's Ringtail Possum
Pseudochirops archeri	Green Ringtail Possum
Pseudochirops corinnae	Golden Ringtail Possum
Pseudochirops cupreus	Coppery Ringtail Possum