Derby's Woolly Opossum

Fascinating facts about the Derby's Woolly Opossum

• Its tail comprises 58 to 67 percent of its body length, making it more than half the opossum's total size. The tail is partially naked and prehensile, meaning it can wrap around and grip branches as the animal climbs. This grasping ability, combined with its efficient climbing skills, lets the opossum move swiftly among vines and branches in the forest canopy. It also provides balance when the animal leaps between trunks, enhancing its remarkable agility.
• When light shines on its eyes, they emit a vivid red glow, a trait noted in the species description. The opossum is nocturnal and often active in the dim understory, and it can produce squeals when distressed.
• Measuring 60 to 70 centimetres in total length, Derby's woolly opossum is the largest species in the Caluromys genus. Adults weigh between 200 and 400 grams, and its brown coat is lighter than that of the brown-eared woolly opossum, with white-to-pink ears and a partially naked prehensile tail.
• Its scientific name honours Edward Smith-Stanley, the 13th Earl of Derby. The specimen Waterhouse described was housed in the Earl's museum collection, linking the species to British natural history.
• When food is scarce, it becomes more active, but bright light suppresses its movements. Studies show activity rises with hunger and falls on exposure to light.

Sources

Every fact above was checked against these pages, and kept only where one of them states it.

• Wikipedia

At a glance

About the Derby's Woolly Opossum

In the lush, vibrant canopies of Central America's tropical forests, the Derby's Woolly Opossum weaves a silent, nocturnal path, its soft, woolly fur blending seamlessly into the dappled shadows. With an almost ethereal grace, it glides through the trees, its prehensile tail acting as a fifth limb, anchoring it to branches as it searches for ripe fruit and tender leaves. As it moves, the opossum's large, round eyes shine like moonlit pools, drinking in the secrets of its mystical, midnight world.

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