EAST AURORA NY — The Opossum is one of those animals that just doesn't get respect.
Widely considered a nuisance animal, most people are familiar with it as road kill, rather than a beneficial part of the environment.
There are a number of misconceptions that have led to the Opossum getting a bad, and unfair reputation, explains Tanya Lowe of Hawk Creek Wildlife Center.
"When people see that bare tail, they automatically think of rats and put them in the same category. Plus when Opossums encounter humans, the first thing they're going to do to try and ward you off is they're going to start hissing, drooling, snarling...so people often see that and have the misconception that they animal must be rabid, when in fact it's just the Opossum trying to tell you to stay away."
And the rabies myth couldn't be further from the trut.
In fact, it's very unusual for this species to carry Rabies.
"It is extremely, extremely rare - predominately because their body temperature is too low to maintain the virus. Their body temperature is between 94 and 97 degrees Fahrenheit, so the virus doesn't survive well," said Lowe.
She also says that Opossums are immune to the venom of poisonous snakes too - a quality that could eventually help humans.
"There is some research being done to see if we can utilize this amazing ability of Opossums to create a universal anti-venom, which could save so many lives. Especially across the world in places like India [...] where snake bites and death from snake bites are much more common."
Opossums also help keep the environment clean. "They are the sanitation crew of the wild! They will pretty much eat anything. They will eat meat, they will eat vegetables, they eat a ton of bugs, they eat carrion, they eat eggs, they eat pretty much anything - they're not picky. They're Omnivores, so pretty much everything is on the menu, so they do a lot of valuable clean up of eating things that other animals might not want to eat."
That voracious appetite is also beneficial to human society. The slow moving Opossum attracts ticks that cling to their fur, and fortunately the 'possums find them delicious, eating thousands each season.
In a region plagued by the tick borne Lyme Disease, Lowe says that's a huge benefit.
"They stay fastidiously clean, so when they're grooming themselves, they eat over ninety five percent of those ticks that are on their body, which is helping to again, control Lyme Disease, which is a really important thing, and has become a larger concern the last couple of years. So opossums are kind of the unsung super heroes right now."
The Opossum deserves our respect as both benefactor to the environment and reminder of the importance of all life on Earth.
"They're very adaptable, so you've got them living in the city, you've got them living in the country. So just give them their space, let them go about their way, go about their business. Every animal, down to the tick and the opossum, has a very important role in maintaining the balance of nature."