As the weather warms and spring nears, urban wildlife like brushtail and ringtail possums get more rambunctious all over suburban Australia. These two species tend to create a lot of buzz in communities. After sunset, they forage and climb across rooftops, capturing the imagination of curious neighbors. Understanding their behavior and the best practices for cohabitating with these nocturnal creatures can help mitigate conflicts that arise during this lively season.
Brushtail and ringtail possums breed throughout the year, with peak seasons in autumn and spring. This annual breeding cycle only adds to the increase in their activity, as warmer springtime weather entices them to become more mobile and forage more vigorously. As these patterns affect human activity too, spring nightlife gets disrupted by thumping bass, a range of symptoms, up to and including direct physical confrontation with the new furry tenants.
This stimulatory effect can be understood as one part of a bigger story about urban wildlife habitats. Belinda Head, a possum coordinator with WIRES, paints an alarming picture of the animals’ present state. They are desperately trying to escape to areas where they would naturally go to find cover in the wild. Their very successful adaptations to urban environments often bring them into direct conflict with their human counterparts.
“These animals are seeking refuge in places where ordinarily they’d be able to find that out in the wild,” – Belinda Head
Confusion abounds on the best way to deal with possums. This confusion is a common result of most people not understanding their behavior nor the legal protection afforded to them. In what is usually an attempt to do the right thing, many well-meaning residents trap possums and release them into bushland or parklands. Even worse, this practice is harmful to the possums.
“Possums that are relocated out of their territory typically die within days due to stress or attack from other animals that are actually then trying to keep that balance within their territory,” – Belinda Head
Additionally, nearly every extermination company is actually not licensed to remove native wildlife. WIRES frequently fields emergency calls about possums that have been seized for days following illegal captures. This puts the onus on consumers to check that pest control services have appropriate licenses to handle native fauna.
“The first thing that [people] should be doing is actually asking, ‘Are you licensed to trap or relocate native animals?’” – Belinda Head
To avoid odd possum encounters in the first place, wildlife experts say it’s better to be proactive and avoid relocation. Kylie Soanes, an urban ecologist with the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, explains some of the best approaches to reducing human-wildlife conflict. Commercial animal exclusion sprays, like Natural Defense’s Poss-Off formula, can be used to keep these animals out of under-deck areas and other unwanted locations. Night access could be constrained by physical barriers that must be used to deter deer, such as fine wire mesh or fruit protection bags.
When building exclusions, it is important to use wildlife-friendly materials with openings no larger than 5mm to avoid entrapment. Observing possum behavior in-depth can help us form better strategies for managing them. Most residents can humanely exclude possums by simply waiting for them to exit the roof space at night. Later they can close the entrance without getting the animals stuck inside.
“If you do that over a few days or a week, just to get a sense of what the different entry points are, then you know how you can make your plan of defence,” – Kylie Soanes
Last financial year, Wildlife Victoria received more than 19,000 calls for brushtail and ringtail possums requiring rescue. This alarming statistic reminds us of the importance of better education and awareness about safely coexisting with these remarkable creatures. Now that spring has arrived with an influx of building and development activities, conflicts between humans and possums will continue to get worse unless preventative measures are taken.
Soanes counters this by stressing the need to identify little tweaks that will make it easier for people and wildlife to coexist.
“Look for those tiny little tweaks that we can do that make it actually less annoying and [a] less inconvenient thing to live with wildlife,” – Kylie Soanes
Spring brings us not only warmer climes, but a wider world teeming with life. As these urban ecosystems continue to bloom, it is increasingly critical for people to reconnect and reconsider their relationships with the wildlife sharing their spaces.
“So we really need to stop and think about why this situation is happening, and why is it increasing rather than decreasing?” – Belinda Head
