To some Possums look like giant rats to some they look like the legend and myth Chupacabra. Sometimes the look of these creatures can be pretty scary and thus the misconceptions of them being aggressive and violent is rampant.
However, possums can’t be any further from that, they are omnivorous animals that love to eat fruits, insects, and vegetables. Let’s go over the nuances of these species and learn how adorable they can be.
Do possums eat bananas?
Possums mostly eat grains, fruits, and seeds. So, possums will eat bananas as they are highly nutritious to them and sweet as well. They do need to be old enough to have some. Although, young possums can eat mashed bananas. Before they are adults it is not advised to give them only fruits diet.
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Possums are known to be scavengers. They eat almost anything, from fruits veggies to even small mammals. They will also eat a few things from the carnivore’s diet like fish, bugs, snakes, dog or cat food, and even garbage.
However, are a few different kinds of possums out there. Let us look at a few and see if they eat bananas or not.
Ringtail possums:
These guys are smaller than the other possums. They can weigh up to 1kg. They have brown eyes, and their fur is grey-brown to red-brown with a hint of cream-white color.
These possums mainly have a diet of Eucalyptus leaves. However, they still eat other fruits and veggies including bananas.
Brushtail possums:
Commonly known as Phalangeridae. This family of possums mostly contains nocturnal marsupials.
The brushtail possums mainly eat plant materials and supplement that with bird eggs. They mostly reside on trees and thus have easy access to them.
However, these possums do not shy away from common fruits and vegetables. Thus, they do eat a banana if they stumble upon one.
Baby possums:
Baby possums are not picky about what they want to eat. Years of evolution took a route for them that made them use whatever means to survive.
However, we should never feed baby possums if they are orphaned or injured. This is because a wrong kind of milk can cause metabolic irreversible bone disease.
Also, if the baby possum does not want to eat something we should not force them to eat it either.
So, the question is, “Can baby possums eat bananas?”. We can easily say they can, but it is not advised to give them bananas at such a young age. We should rather give them a mashed banana.
Do possums eat banana peels or skins?
Possums unlike other rodents that have half opposable thumbs have fully opposable thumbs. However, they use these opposable hands that are located on their hind feet to climb trees and grasp on branches.
However, in theory, possums should be able to peel bananas like us, humans, before eating them.
But in reality, a possum would eat a banana whole skin and all. This in turn has other risks for the health of possums. Bananas might have insecticide on their skin to repel pests.
On the other hand, if the possums ingest those pest harmful chemicals, they would cease to live due to poisoning. Therefore, it is best to feed possums bananas peeled off.
Are bananas good or bad for possums?
Possums while scavengers have a strict diet of particular things that they do not expand upon. Exploring new diet plans can be life-threatening for these creatures.
They usually will eat leaves, vegetables, fruits, and even flowers. They get their proteins from insects and or other small mammals. A banana on the other hand is something they love and eat whenever they find any.
Good for:
Rich diet:
Banana is a rich food filled with potassium and a variety of nutrients. It can be a great treat for the possums since they taste sweet. This is why bananas are good for possums.
Mineral source:
Bananas are good for possums because they provide a variety of essential minerals and vitamins that will help boost their health.
Banana can also be a good source of antioxidants, vitamin B6, phytonutrients, vitamin C as well as sugar.
Bad for:
Poison threat:
Banana isn’t necessarily bad for possums but in certain situations, they can be bad for them. Like when the poison that is used to combat pests from eating bananas can be poisonous for the possums.
We can give possums organic bananas or peeled bananas to make sure they do not ingest any pesticide.
Overeating:
While bananas are healthy for these animals, we shouldn’t overdose on them. The bananas have a high amount of sugar.
To clarify, possums are not built to handle too much sugar in their system and thus it can be poisonous to them if they eat it too much.
Do possums like bananas?
Bananas are sometimes described as the perfect fruit. They are rich in fiber, potassium, and natural sugar. They carry important vitamins such as vitamin C and other minerals that can help in the growth of a possum.
The fruit has a balanced amount of sugar and fiber which ultimately maintains a healthy amount of blood glucose level.
The taste of this fruit has a bland flavor with an apparent grassiness. However, the yellower the banana the sweeter it is because it has a much higher concentration of sugar.
Possum loves anything natural and since banana is such a nutritious fruit that is also sweet and tastes good, they love it. They will chow down on these fruits even if you don’t peel off the skin.
What do possums eat in the garden?
Possums are omnivorous animals that eat almost anything they can get their hands on. Evolution has made them that way in order to survive.
Possums will eat insect bugs, pests, garden slugs and they especially have a love for snails. They basically act like police for your garden.
Possums are clean animals and they will eat mites that get on them, they eat around 5000 mites every year. They will also eat the bigger creatures like rodents, snakes, toads as well as animals that might be rotting someplace.
What fruit and food do possums eat?
Possum love eating fruits and seeds, they especially love apples and persimmons. Possum does not usually eat an entire fruit in one go.
Possum most of the time will eat one of the portions of the fruit. Sometimes, they like eating one certain portion than the other.
Some other examples of fruits that possums like to eat are kiwifruit, rockmelon, pear, pawpaw, honeydew, carambola, watermelon, berries, oranges, and many more.
What can I feed a possum in my yard?
There is a basic procedure to follow before we can go ahead and feed possums in our backyard. Possums are omnivorous creatures; they will eat anything to survive. Let’s go over these below.
Feeding Station:
For starters, we need to first make a place where they can come and eat something. Fill them with meaty treats like cat kibble. Do not put human food, especially do not give them junk food.
Fruits & Vegetables:
Possum love to eat sweet and fresh food. Fruits and vegetables can be a good source of minerals and vitamins. Possums need their food to be of natural origin.
In the case of fruits, they will eat carambola, pear, honeydew, oranges, kiwifruit, pawpaw, grapes, rockmelon, tomatoes, apples, watermelon, berries, and obviously bananas.
In the case of vegetables, the possum will eat carrots, potatoes, peas, beans, tomatoes. They will eat herbs like chards, basil or parsley, broccoli, and coriander.
If you want the possums to keep coming to your backyard, make sure to supervise your pets in the daytime and not allow them to go outside during nighttime.
Feed the possum during the evening. Watch over them as they eat and clean out the bowls to avoid feeding rodents in the evening.
Big Cats might strike one if they think they are a threat. On the other hand, dogs might even cause serious injuries or finish them off entirely if they are unsupervised.
Final thoughts
Possum is omnivorous animal by day and scavenger by night. Evolution gave them the ability to chow down on almost anything that they can find from fruits, insects to carcasses of animals. Therefore, possums do love eating bananas as much as they love other food that comes from nature.