We had an opossum visit the Springbrook Nature Center suet feeder on Tuesday morning.  I get the feeling from how fat he is that he has been a regular at the suet feeder all winter. One opossum can eat in one bite what a chickadee might eat in a whole month!

Thirty years ago there were no opossums in the Twin Cities and north of here. The winters were too cold for their non fur-covered ears, toes and tail. But as winters are just a little bit warmer now the opossums have extended their range and now live well north of the Twin Cities and are very common here.

After he chewed the bottom of the feeder open, he grabbed a big chunk of suet and climbed a nearby tree to eat it in safety. Then he showed his teeth to make sure I didn’t get too close with the camera and moved out on the skinny branches of the tree.

Opossums are the only wild marsupials (mammals who raise their young in pouches) in the United States. The females will soon have their tiny babies crawl into their pouches.

Siah St. Clair is the director at Springbrook Nature Center.