Driving along one of Wisconsin’s many suburban roads, a guy named Ed saw a possum crossing from one side to the other in the distance. It was running fast enough, but something was definitely slowing it down, as if it were dragging a bag. And as he drove up, the driver realized that it wasn’t a bag at all, but five furry and restless kids who were clinging to their parent as she moved them across the street.
They looked quite comical-the four of them wrapped their arms around the mother’s torso, giving her a good protection from the wind. But the fifth didn’t have enough place on his mother’s back, so he grabbed her tail and dangled from it. Not that he was in the most uncomfortable position. Possums’ tails are so powerful that they help them stay on branches, so the fifth baby just floated, not dragged over the ground. Most likely, it was difficult for his brother, who settled down by the head, because he had to make a lot of effort not to fall off – not the best adventure.
The mother’s responsibility is enviable. With what inflexible will she strove to complete the crossing as quickly as possible.
The situation in the picture is typical. Mother and offspring have a strong bond. There are no other marsupials in the U.S. and Canada besides possums. In the pouch, babies are nursed and carried long distances when they are still young. But the characters in this article are now very much grown and simply won’t fit into the bag. And in general, there are many different videos on the web that depict families of marsupials strolling on the back of their parents.
And the cubs sit on their backs not only during walks. From two to five months of age, they almost never leave their mother’s neck. But when the babies begin their independent life, they do not maintain any companionship. If it were not necessary to give birth to new representatives, they would not associate with their relatives.
