Mammals · Diprotodontia · Burramyidae

Eastern Pygmy Possum

Cercartetus nanus

Least Concern

The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary

The eastern pygmy possum is a tiny arboreal marsupial of south-eastern Australia, with a prehensile tail longer than its body and toes with expanded pads that give it an extraordinary grip. It feeds mainly on the nectar and pollen of banksias and eucalypts, and also on insects. When food is scarce or the weather cold it enters deep torpor: it can spend more than a week at a time with its body almost at ambient temperature, curled up inside a nest.

Weight

15 g – 43 g

Size

7 cm – 11 cm

Lifespan

5 years

Diet

Omnivore

Combines animal and plant food depending on availability.

Activity

Nocturnal

Active mainly at night.

Social structure

Solitary

Lives and hunts alone, joining others only to breed.

Sighting difficulty

Easy

Temperate forestGrasslandOmnivore Nectarivore Nocturnal Solitary Temperate forest Grassland Mammal

1countries 33parks

Fun facts

It can spend more than a week in deep torpor, its heart almost stopped and its body cold to the touch, and wake up as though nothing had happened: it is one of the mammals that has best mastered that energy-saving technique.
It coils its prehensile tail into a spiral when it sleeps and uses it as a fifth hand while climbing among the banksia flowers it feeds on.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (mammal)
Habitat & environment: Coastal heath, sclerophyll forest and temperate rainforest of south-eastern Australia and Tasmania
Sexual maturity: 6.2 months
Gestation / incubation: 30 days
Litter / clutch size: 4

Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cercartetus_nanus