Common ringtail possum – bugari

What is a common ringtail possum?

The common ringtail possum is a small marsupial about the size of a cat. Marsupials are different to other mammals as they have a pouch. Like many Australian animals, the common ringtail possum is nocturnal, meaning it is active at night.

Common ringtail possums can be distinguished from other possums by the white patches behind their eyes and on their bellies, the orange-brown tinges on their tail and limbs and long, thin tails which end with a white tip. The tail of common ringtail possums is often referred to as a fifth limb as it is prehensile, meaning that it can grasp objects such as nesting materials and tree branches.

The scientific name for the common ringtail possum is  Pseudocheirus peregrinus.  Pseudocheirus  means 'false hand', and  peregrinus  means 'wanderer '.  The Darug name for ringtail possum is  bugari.

Common ringtail possum

The small round ears and white patches behind their eyes distinguishes common ringtail possums from other possums.

What are the features of common ringtail possums?

Features of a ringtail possum | Field of Mars EEC (0:54 min)

Where do common ringtail possums live?

Common ringtail possums are arboreal, meaning they live in the treetops. They prefer areas of dense foliage – leaf cover – for protection.

In the daytime, common ringtail possums sleep in a spherical nest called a 'drey' made out of sticks and leaves. One drey may be shared by several possums.

Dreys can be found in tree hollows, tree forks or dense vegetation, hidden away from predators. This drey was spotted at the Field of Mars Reserve.

What do common ringtail possums eat?

Common ringtail possums are folivores. This means they are a type of herbivore that mainly eats leaves. They are one of the three Australian mammals that can survive just by eating toxic eucalypt leaves. Common ringtail possums also eat flowers and fruit.

Common ringtail possums digest their food twice by eating their own faecal (poo) pellets. This allows them to maximise the amount of nutrients they get from their food as eucalypt leaves themselves are fairly low in nutrients.

As a nocturnal animal the common ringtail possum only feeds at night.

What role do common ringtail possums play in their ecosystem?

Just like many birds and insects, common ringtail possums help pollinate plants. As they feed on flowers, pollen gets trapped in their fur. As the possum moves around, it transfers this pollen to other flowers it makes contact with.

Common ringtail possums are an important food source for native tree-dwelling (arboreal) predators such as powerful owls.

Sharp claws and hairless pads help common ringtail possums climb trees.

What sounds do common ringtail possums make?

Unlike their noisy relative the common brushtail possum, common ringtail possums are much quieter. They communicate through soft twitters, squeaks and chirrups which can be easily mistaken for bird sounds.

How are common ringtail possums adapted to their environment?

The tail of the common ringtail possum is often referred to as a fifth limb. This is because it is prehensile, meaning that it can grasp objects such as nesting materials. The prehensile tail is also used to help climb and jump between tree branches, fences and powerlines. The underside of the tail is hairless, allowing it to better grip onto surfaces.

Common ringtail possums have opposable thumbs on their hind feet and two opposable thumbs on their front feet, allowing them to grip and hold structures. Sharp claws and hairless pads help common ringtail possums climb trees, whilst a gap between their second and third fingers helps them to securely hold onto branches.

Similar to other possums, ringtail possums have a twin claw on their hind feet, like a comb, for grooming themselves. The last two toes are fused to form the twin claw, known as syndactyl.

As nocturnal animals, common ringtail possums rely on their large protruding eyes which gives them wide-angled vision. Common ringtail possums also rely on their sensitive nose, whiskers and large ears to locate food, predators other possums and their home range.

Features and adaptations of the common ringtail possum.

What is the life cycle of common ringtail possums?

Common ringtail possums have relatively short lifespans, living for up to 6 years.

Adult possums breed between autumn and spring. Like all marsupials, common ringtail possums give birth to live young and rear them in their pouches.

Orphaned baby possums are kept in small, soft, warm bags to replicate their mother's pouch.

Common ringtail possum joeys are about the size of a jellybean when they are born.

It takes 20-26 days for a joey to develop in the womb. Usually, common ringtail possums give birth to twin joeys. Like many marsupials, possum joeys are hairless, blind and tiny – less than 2 centimetres in length.

Joeys crawl into their mother's pouch and attach to a teat for milk.

A mother ringtail possum and her young.

Joeys leave the pouch after around 7 weeks and ride on their mother’s back for another 6 months.

The common ringtail possum is the only species of possum where the male helps to care for the young by carrying them on his back when the mother is feeding.

Once outside of the pouch possums have rapid growth spurts, gaining up to 10 grams every day.

An adult common ringtail possum.

Female common ringtail possums reach adulthood by 13 months and males become adults at 12 months.

What threats do common ringtail possums face and how can we help them?

Although they are adapted to urban areas, common ringtail possums are often killed by power lines, hit by cars and killed by introduced mammals such as foxes and pet cats and dogs.

Being a responsible pet owner by keeping cats and dogs indoors at night helps protect ringtail possums from these predators.

Installing nest boxes can also help provide safe shelter for common ringtail possums.

Common ringtail possums will sometimes built a drey in a wooden nest boxes.