Marsupials are a class of mammals which are characterized by a marsupium or pouch. The marsupium is used to carry the youngsters during their infancy. The possum is only one of the many marsupials that can be seen all around the world, although for some years many of these species are becoming extinct. Marsupials can be seen in North and South America, Australia, New Guinea and Sulawesi as well as in other parts of the world, although more rarely. Here you can read more about how marsupials developed, and you can find additional information on some of the marsupials you should know about.
Anthropologists found the oldest fossils of marsupials in China of today, a place that many of us would not expect. Some believe that marsupials came into Asia through Australia even before the continents started splitting, meaning about 100 million years ago. Moreover, specialists believe that marsupials reached North America in the same way around 65 million years ago when South and North America were still not split. It is believed that opossums were the first marsupials to reach South America and the mammals that raised a strong presence in this area. Moreover, some claim that these marsupials were at competition with different species of crocodilians and birds as well as with the carnivore mammals. The development and spread of the marsupials in South America continued until about 3 million years ago when it is estimated that the split between North and South America occurred. By this time, opossum marsupials seem to have invaded Central America whereas some species such as the Virginia Opossum reached as far north as Canada. Australia is believed to have enjoyed the presence of marsupials since nearly 50 million years ago.
The infant of marsupials is called a joey. Marsupials have a short gestation period of only about 4 weeks and the infant is usually blind, furless and spends most of its time in its mother’s pouch. The pouch presents a teat that is used by the joey to latch onto and get fed. Because it is born in a fetal state, the joey will mostly spend several months in the pouch of its mother, basically until it develops fully and will be able to start learning survival skills. The pouch is used however for a longer period of time as most joeys return to it for sleeping or in times of distress. In some species the joeys stays in the pouch for about a year, and in others until another joey is born.
Marsupials that you have heard of are the koala, possum (in Australia) and opossum (in America), and the kangaroo as perhaps the best known species of marsupials. To conclude, as you can see, these mammals have a very long history in time and although some species are now extinct, many of them are still out there and worth to be seen.