How do I spend my time in the Fall? Looking for apples, of course!
That's what our contributing opossum told us when we started writing this article.
If you’ve been seeing more opossums around your yard lately, there’s a good reason: fall is an important season for these remarkable little marsupials.
As the days get shorter and temperatures begin to drop, opossums are taking advantage of the foods that are especially plentiful right now, while also preparing themselves for the challenges of winter.
And no, they aren't hibernating. In fact, there’s quite a lot going on in the world of the fall opossum!
Fall is a time of plenty
Opossums are famously opportunistic eaters. Their diet changes throughout the year depending on what is available, and autumn brings a particularly delicious menu.
As summer turns to fall, fruit becomes an increasingly important part of the opossum diet. Wild grapes, apples, berries, persimmons, and other fallen fruits can provide abundant calories when they are ripe and readily available. Studies of wild opossums have found that plant material, especially fruit, makes up a substantially larger portion of their diet in the fall than in winter.
So if you have an opossum wandering through your yard at night and stopping beneath an apple tree, grapevine, or berry-producing shrub, it may simply be taking advantage of nature's fall buffet.
But fruit isn't all they're eating!
Opossums are omnivores and will continue to eat insects, earthworms, snails, other invertebrates, small animals, carrion, and whatever other appropriate food they happen to encounter. Their ability to switch between food sources is one of the reasons they are such successful survivors.
They're putting on some winter insurance
One of the most important things an opossum does in fall is build up fat reserves.
Unlike squirrels and other animals that prepare for winter by collecting and storing food, opossums don't create a winter pantry. Instead, they take advantage of plentiful fall food to put on some additional body fat.
That fat becomes an important energy reserve when winter arrives and food is harder to find. Research on opossums has documented this seasonal accumulation of fat in fall, followed by reduced activity during periods of severe winter weather.
This is particularly important in New England, where winter can be a serious challenge for an animal that evolved in warmer parts of North America.
Their diet will change again as winter approaches
The abundance of fruit won't last forever. As temperatures fall and fruit becomes less available, the balance of an opossum's diet shifts. Animal foods become increasingly important during the colder months.They’re looking for insects and other invertebrates like earthworms, small vertebrates, and carrion when they can still be found. That flexibility is one of the opossum's greatest survival tools. An opossum doesn't need to find one particular food every night. Instead, it is essentially a four-legged scavenger with a remarkably broad menu.
They're also looking for good winter shelter
There is another important item on the fall to-do list: finding somewhere safe to sleep.
Opossums don't dig burrows of their own. Instead, they take advantage of whatever sheltered spaces are available, including hollow trees and logs, rock crevices, brush piles, abandoned burrows, and spaces beneath buildings. A cozy, protected den can make a significant difference when the weather turns bitter.
This is one reason that a little untidiness in the landscape can be good for wildlife. A brush pile, fallen log, or patch of leaves isn't "messy" from an animal's perspective, it is valuable habitat.
Opossums don't hibernate
This is one of the biggest misconceptions about opossums in winter, they simply do not hibernate.
They remain capable of being active throughout the winter, although they become less active during periods of extreme cold and may remain sheltered in a den for several days. They are primarily nocturnal, but particularly cold weather can sometimes alter their normal activity patterns. That means the opossum you see padding quietly across your yard on a mild December night isn't unusual at all. It may simply be out looking for dinner.
Fall is especially important for young opossums
Fall can also be a time of transition for the year's young.
Opossums can have multiple litters during the year, and young opossums become independent at roughly four months of age. By autumn, some of the young animals born earlier in the year are striking out on their own, learning where to find food and shelter and establishing their own ranges.
For these young opossums, the abundance of fall food can be particularly valuable. They have a lot to learn, and winter is coming.
How you can help an opossum this fall
The best thing you can do for a wild opossum is surprisingly simple:
You don't need to provide a special winter shelter or put out a bowl of food*. In most circumstances, a healthy wild opossum is perfectly capable of finding what it needs.
Instead, you can help by protecting the habitat around your home:
Leave some fallen leaves and natural ground cover in place.
Keep brush piles and fallen logs when possible.
Don't seal up potential den spaces if an animal is actively using them.
Keep dogs away from wildlife.
Secure garbage and compost so wildlife isn't encouraged to depend on human food.
Drive carefully at night, particularly on roads near wooded or wetland areas.
If you see an opossum out on a cool fall evening? There's no need to worry just because it is wandering around. It may be doing exactly what a healthy wild opossum should be doing: finding dinner, exploring its territory, and getting ready for winter.
*That said, we do have some tips and advice for those who wish to help their backyard friends when these suggested natural remedies are not possible, or inadequate. Please reach out to us for one on one discussions and guidance (info@newenglandopossum.org)
A little fall appreciation for the opossum!
While squirrels are gathering nuts and birds are preparing for migration, the opossum has its own strategy: eat what is abundant, build up energy reserves, find good shelter, and stay flexible.
It isn't glamorous. It isn't especially fast. And it certainly isn't graceful.
But it is remarkably well adapted to making a living in the world around us.
So the next time you spot that pointed little face in the beam of your flashlight on a crisp autumn night, remember: you're looking at an animal that is already getting ready for winter.
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