What Do Opossums Eat?
Complete Guide to Opossum Diet

A baby opossum on our 30-acre Michigan wildlife conservation habitat — one of nature's most misunderstood animals.

Most people see an opossum and think pest. Hissing, shuffling, beady-eyed, playing dead in the headlights. But the moment you understand what opossums eat — and how much they quietly do for your yard, your garden, and your local ecosystem — you'll never look at them the same way.

What do opossums eat? The short answer: almost everything. Opossums are opportunistic omnivores, which means they eat insects, ticks, snakes, rodents, fruit, berries, carrion, bird eggs, frogs, and even garbage. Their dietary flexibility is exactly why they've survived virtually unchanged for 70 million years — longer than almost any other mammal on the continent.

On our 30-acre Michigan conservation habitat, we see opossums regularly. And after watching them work through the landscape night after night, we've developed a deep respect for what these animals actually do. This guide covers everything — what opossums eat, what possums eat, why they're incredible for tick control, and what to do if one is living near your home.

🐾What Do Opossums Eat?

Opossums are opportunistic omnivores — one of the least picky eaters in the animal kingdom. They eat whatever is available, wherever they happen to be. That flexibility is one of the main reasons they've survived as a species for over 70 million years.

Here's a broad overview of what opossums eat:

🍂Opossum Diet by Season

Unlike some wildlife, opossums do not hibernate. They forage year-round, which means their diet shifts with what's available in each season.

Opossums in southern states have a much easier winter than those in Michigan and the northern U.S. Our Michigan opossums are genuinely at the northern edge of their natural range — they survive, but winter is hard on them.

🕷️Do Opossums Eat Ticks?

Yes — and this is one of the most remarkable things about opossums. A single opossum can eat up to 5,000 ticks in a single season. This isn't a myth or an exaggeration — it's documented through research at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, which found that opossums kill and consume the vast majority of ticks that try to feed on them.

Here's why it works: when a tick attaches to an opossum, the opossum meticulously grooms itself — using its teeth and claws to find and eat the tick before it can fully feed. Opossums are extraordinarily efficient at this. Scientists estimated that in a forest with a healthy opossum population, these animals collectively consume over 90% of the ticks they encounter.

If you live in an area with deer ticks and Lyme disease risk — which includes most of Michigan — having opossums on your property is genuinely beneficial. They're working for you every single night.

🐍Do Opossums Eat Snakes?

An opossum on our Michigan habitat — these animals are remarkably resistant to snake venom, making them natural snake predators.

Yes — and this is where it gets really interesting. Opossums have a partial immunity to certain snake venoms, including the venom of rattlesnakes, copperheads, and cottonmouths. A peptide in opossum blood actually neutralizes many pit viper venoms, which allows them to kill and eat venomous snakes that would kill other similarly-sized animals.

Researchers have actually studied this immunity and are investigating whether opossum-derived peptides could someday be used in antivenom treatments. For now, what it means for your backyard is simple — if you have opossums, you have a natural predator of the snakes most dangerous to humans and pets.

🐭Do Opossums Eat Mice and Rats?

Yes. Opossums are efficient predators of mice, voles, and other small rodents. This makes them a genuinely useful presence around outbuildings, barns, and gardens where rodent populations tend to build up. They hunt mostly at night, patrolling the same areas repeatedly in search of easy prey.

Opossums won't eliminate a serious rodent infestation on their own, but they do keep populations in check — and without traps, poison, or any effort on your part. On our Michigan habitat, we consider them a natural part of the rodent management system alongside barn owls and red foxes.

🦘What Do Possums Eat?

"Possum" and "opossum" are often used interchangeably in North America — and for our purposes, they refer to the same animal: the Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana), the only marsupial native to North America. So what do possums eat is exactly the same question as what do opossums eat.

It's worth noting that true possums (Phalangeridae) are a completely different animal native to Australia and Southeast Asia. Australian possums eat mostly leaves, fruit, and flowers. The North American opossum/possum is a much more aggressive, opportunistic omnivore by comparison.

In North America, possums eat: insects, ticks, rodents, snakes, frogs, berries, fruit, nuts, carrion, bird eggs, and anything edible they can find in your yard, garbage, or compost pile.

🍼What Do Baby Opossums Eat?

Baby opossums — called joeys — are born incredibly small (about the size of a honeybee) and spend their first months in their mother's pouch, nursing exclusively on milk. They stay in the pouch for roughly 60–70 days before emerging to ride on their mother's back.

Once joeys start leaving the pouch and riding on mom, they begin sampling whatever she's eating — insects, soft fruit, carrion. They transition off milk gradually, learning what's edible by following their mother's foraging patterns. By the time they're independent (around 4–5 months), they're eating the same diverse diet as adults.

✅Can Opossums Eat This? Quick Reference Guide

People find opossums eating some surprising things. Here's a quick reference for common questions:

🏡What Attracts Opossums to Your Yard?

Opossums follow food. If they keep showing up in your yard, one of these is the reason:

1. Unsecured garbage or compostOpossums are outstanding scavengers. An unsecured garbage can or open compost pile is one of the most reliable opossum attractants there is. Use locking lids.
2. Pet food left outside overnightDog or cat food left outdoors is one of the top reasons opossums visit suburban yards regularly. Bring it in every evening.
3. Fallen fruit under treesApples, crabapples, persimmons, and berries on the ground draw opossums intensely in late summer and fall. Rake up fallen fruit if visits are unwanted.
4. Bird feeders with spilled seedSeed on the ground beneath feeders is a reliable nightly snack for opossums. A tray feeder or seed catcher reduces spillage.
5. Rodent populationsIf you have mice or voles near your home, opossums may be patrolling for them. In this case — let them work.

🐱Do Opossums Eat Cats?

This is one of the most-searched opossum questions — and the answer is almost always no. Opossums are not predators of healthy adult cats. An opossum is roughly the same size as a house cat, and a healthy adult cat is not prey an opossum would pursue.

What actually happens when an opossum and a cat encounter each other? Usually one of two things: the opossum hisses, drools, and puffs up to look threatening (a bluff), or it plays dead. In most cases, the cat backs off and both animals go their separate ways.

The "playing dead" behavior — called thanatosis — is an involuntary response, not a conscious decision. The opossum literally faints from fear and enters a comatose-like state that can last minutes to hours. It's one of the most effective defense mechanisms in the animal kingdom.

🌱Are Opossums Good for Your Yard?

Yes — overwhelmingly yes. Opossums are one of the most misunderstood and underappreciated animals in North America. Here's what they do for your property every single night:

According to the U.S. Forest Service, native scavengers and omnivores like opossums play a critical role in ecosystem health — cleaning up carrion, managing insect populations, and keeping the food web balanced in ways that benefit the entire community of plants and animals on your land.

❓Frequently Asked Questions