Wildlife authorities in Homer are asking for the public’s help after additional opossums were discovered in the Kenai Peninsula town — presenting the threat that a population of the invasive species could establish itself there.
Now, additional opossums have surfaced in Homer — one was captured Thursday and a second was spotted Friday on Klondike Avenue, according to Jason Herreman, assistant area biologist for the Kenai Peninsula. That’s not far from where the original marsupial was first seen on Grubstake Avenue.
Fish and Game’s working hypothesis is that the additional animals are offspring of the original opossum, “based on the size of the one that we’ve caught” and the time frame between when Grubby arrived and the discovery of the new opossums, Herreman said.Young opossums, or joeys, are only dependent on their mothers for about two months, Herreman said, which lines up with the amount of time Grubby was loose in Homer before being captured.
Herreman said there are some options to place the young opossums at facilities out of state. Fish and Game won’t be placing any more opossums at the Alaska Zoo permanently, but they will likely be housed there before being sent elsewhere, he said. Anyone who sees an opossum in Homer is encouraged to call Fish and Game at 907-235-8191 during business hours. Herreman said that outside of business hours, people should call the Homer Police Department at 907-235-3150.
“I would ask folks to please give us a call if they see them,” Herreman said. “We’re actively pursuing these animals, we don’t want to get a population established in Alaska because of the issues with disease and competition with our native fauna.”Megan Pacer is a digital audience producer at the Anchorage Daily News.
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