PA Virginia Opossum Hunting Guide

Also known as: Possum, Virginia opossum

The Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana), also known as the North American opossum, is a member of the opossum family found from southern Canada to northern Costa Rica, making it the northernmost marsupial in the world. Commonly referred to simply as the possum, it is a solitary nocturnal animal about the size of a domestic cat, and a successful opportunist. Opossums are familiar to many North Americans as they frequently inhabit settled areas near food sources like trash cans, pet food, compost piles, gardens or housemice. Their slow, nocturnal nature and their attraction to roadside carrion make opossums more likely to become roadkill than other animals in their range.

Life History

Opossums are omnivorous and eat a wide range of plant-based food, as well as animal-based food like small invertebrates, carrion, eggs, fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, small mammals, and other small animals. Insects such as grasshoppers, crickets, and beetles make up the bulk of the animal foods eaten by opossums. It is a common misconception that opossums eat up to 95% of the ticks they encounter and it is claimed they may eat up to 5,000 ticks per season, preventing the spread of tick-born illnesses, including Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. A widely publicized 2009 study by the Cary Institute theorized that Virginia opossums in a laboratory setting could eat thousands of ticks per week by grooming. However, a 2021 study of the stomach contents of wild Virginia opossums in Illinois did not find any ticks in their diet. No scientific paper as of 2023 has reported ticks in the stomach contents of Virginia opossums. Small animals include young rabbits, meadow voles, mice, rats, birds, snakes, lizards, frogs, fish, crayfish, gastropods, and earthworms. The Virginia opossum has been found to be very resistant to snake venom,, due to unique blood proteins such as lethal toxin neutralizing factor. Attracted to carrion on the side of the highway, opossums are at an increased risk of being hit by motor vehicles. Plant foods are mainly eaten in late summer, autumn, and early winter. These include raspberries, blackberries, apples, acorns, beechnuts, seeds, grains, bulbs, and vegetables. Persimmons are one of the opossum's favorite foods during the autumn. Opossums in urban areas scavenge from bird feeders, vegetable gardens, compost piles, garbage cans, and food dishes intended for dogs and cats. Opossums in captivity are known to engage in cannibalism, though this is probably uncommon in the wild. Because of this, placing an injured opossum in a confined space with its healthy counterparts is inadvisable. The breeding season for the Virginia opossum can begin as early as December and continue through October with most young born between February and June. A female opossum may have one to three litters per year. During the mating season, the male attracts the female by making clicking sounds with his mouth. The female's estrus cycle is 28 days and lasts 36 hours. Gestation lasts 11–13 days and the average litter size is 8–9 infants, although over 20 infants may be born. Opossums have a very high mortality rate of their young; only one in ten offspring survive to reproductive adulthood. Newborns are the size of a honeybee. Once delivered through the median vagina or central birth canal, newborn opossums climb up into the female opossum's pouch and latch onto one of her 13 teats. The young remain latched for two months and in the pouch for 2+1⁄2 months. The young then climb onto the mother's back, where she carries them for the remainder of their time together. It is during this time that the young learn survival skills. They leave th

Hunting Season

No closed season except during firearms deer season. Any hour July 1 - Nov 27 and Dec 14 - June 30. Restricted to night hours: Nov 28 - Dec 13.

License & Regulations

A valid Pennsylvania hunting license is required for all resident and non-resident hunters age 16 and older. Hunters under 16 may hunt while accompanied by a licensed adult or with a mentored youth permit. Licenses can be purchased online through the Pennsylvania Game Commission website (HuntFishPA) or at authorized issuing agents. Additional stamps may be required: furtaker license for trapping, federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp (Duck Stamp) for waterfowl, HIP registration for migratory birds, and special permits for elk, bobcat, fisher, and river otter. All hunters born after June 1, 1965 must successfully complete a hunter-trapper education course before purchasing a license.

References

• Pennsylvania — Virginia Opossum