Has anyone noticed a change in the overall abundance of Skunk and Opossum? Over the past few years I have seen more (trail cam, in person sighting and/pr roadkill). Was wondering if anyone else feels the same. 20 years back in northern franklin county they seemed few and far apart. Glad to see them of course, just curious if seasonal condition are impacting populations..
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More Skunk and Opossum in recent years?
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It's not your imagination. the range of the opossum is definitely expanding northwards. There have been a few published studies about it. They've seen the same thing in Michigan.
Opossums don't hibernate, they have to feed all winter, and they dont have a very warm fur coat compared to some animals, so they normally don't prefer extreme cold like the adirondacks, but we've had some mild years lately, so they might have gained more of a foothold.
Their populations also cycle up and down quite a bit, so some years are more "possumy" than others. Happens with skunks too.He found himself wondering at times, especially in the autumn, about the wild lands, and strange visions of mountains that he had never seen came into his dreams.
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