The Westchester opossum is one of the most well-known kinds of rodents. The opossum, commonly called a possum, has proven to be quite a sturdy animal as it has found ways to adapt to virtually every environment or ecosystem on earth. This not only means that it can handle a wide range of New York environments, but that it can also find food from just about any source.



While many have an image about what a possum looks like, the truth is that these Westchester animals have a wide range in size, ranging from the size of a mouse all the way to the size of a small cat. The face has a long snout and a much slimmed down face that gives it its unique cone shape. This allows it to stick it mouth into holes and other small areas where it can reach food. The back paws of the New York opossum are different from the front. There is an opposable digit on the on each of the back feet, while on the front there are also five digits, but that they are evenly spread out on the foot.

These animals are marsupials, much like a platypus. This means that once born the newborns live in the mother’s pouch for a time until they are ready to go on their own. It only takes 14 days from conception to birth. The weaning period for the young is somewhere between 70 to 125 days. This depends upon the rate of growth of the young, and how safe the mother feels at the time. If the New Yorkopossum is living in relative safety, then it is likely that the weaning period will be much longer. The average lifespan of an opossum is between two and four years. Even if the animal is raised in a zoo or in some other domestic setting, its lifespan does not extend very much. These are solitary animals that prefer to live their lives almost in complete solitude. The only exception to that is during breeding and for the females during the time that they are raising the young. Otherwise, these Westchester animals are by themselves for the majority of their lives.

There is one other exception. There have been instances where some Westchester opossums have lived together in the same burrow. This usually only occurs in the winter, however, where there is a greater need to keep each other warm and safe. Opossums eat a large array of food making them true omnivores. They mainly eat vegetables and meat, but will eat other things that they find in the garbage. It is not uncommon to find them rummaging around a person’s trash cans look for food, and they will eat lots of things that are thrown out by humans.

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