Tuesday, 23 June 2015

Update 23rd June 2015

The brushtails Kiki, Toto, Farley, Comet, and Sasha and the ringtails Wasabi, Tilda and Ruby are all currently visiting.

Toto with injured leg - 16th June 2015

Toto has an injury to her front right leg.

Friday, 5 June 2015

...and you will know us by the trail of piddle

Although otherwise a very cute little ringtail, Tilda has developed the annoying habit of leaving great long trails of piddle along the balcony rail every night.

Tilda aka The Piddler and her handywork - 25th May 2015

I'm not sure what her exact motivation is. It isn't uncommon for possums to leave a little message like this on the hand-rail, but never so much and so consistently. Surely this is going beyond simple scent-marking.

I'm wondering if it's an attempt to deter other possums. It does seem that the brushtails have a greater tendency to chase Tilda away when they see her, so maybe they're showing their displeasure at her fouling up their dining area.

I'm hoping that continually cleaning it off will eventually discourage her.

Sunday, 10 May 2015

Update 10th May 2015

Kiki, Toto, Comet, Farley, Sasha, Wasabi and Tilda are all currently visiting. In addition, a mother ringtail (probably Ruby) and her baby have been seen close to the house several times, having apparently been encouraged to visit by Wasabi. Once Wasabi brought the baby to the house himself; he is a good father and willing to share parenting duties.

Sasha - 7th May 2015

There is still a possum in the ceiling, and I am not sure whether this is Sasha

Sunday, 12 April 2015

Update 12th Apr 2015

Kiki, Toto, Comet, Farley, Wasabi and Tilda are all currently visiting, and sometimes several appear at the same time.

Possum Circus (Left to right: Farley, Toto and Kiki) - 5th April 2015

In addition, there is a new possum in the area. This is an adult female who has been named Sasha. Sasha is probably the one who has been sleeping in the ceiling space, and not the new male seen mating with Kiki (who hasn't been seen since that time). It is unusual for a female possum to come into area, and it's possible the Sasha might have been evicted from a neighbour's ceiling and taken refuge here.

Tuesday, 31 March 2015

Update 31st Mar 2015

Kiki, Toto and Comet are all visiting regularly and in good health.

Toto - 27th Mar 2015

Toto is a typical independent and adventurous baby brushtail. He [I'm assuming Toto is male, although there's no definite proof yet] frequently visits by himself, and even when very young, would run off into a distant tree when he scored a particularly juicy morsel of food.

Wednesday, 11 March 2015

Introducing Toto

Kiki's latest baby (her 12th) is now out of the pouch. He or she (the gender is still unclear although the little one looks more like a boy) has been named Toto.

Toto on Kiki's back - 8th March 2015

Unfortunately, Kiki didn't visit Box 7 when Toto was in the pouch, so we didn't get to see the little one come out to play, like we did with Kiki's previous several babies.

Wednesday, 18 February 2015

Wasabi pays a visit

For the first time since October last year, Wasabi has come to visit. He's been seen around a few times since then but this the first time he's actually come to visit the humans.

Wasabi - 17th Feb 2015

Earlier in the night a mother and baby ringtail were seen in the trees (unfortunately too far away to photograph), so Wasabi might have been in the area keeping an eye on them. Wasabi is a responsible father.

Saturday, 14 February 2015

Update 14th Feb 2015

There is a new male possum in the area. He has been named Farley.

Farley - 8th Feb 2015 [Photo by Xesce]

In late January, he was seen checking out the possum boxes and they must have been to his liking because he's been sleeping in either Box 2 or 3 every day so far this month.

Tuesday, 27 January 2015

Possum Box temperature graphs now available

Early last year, I promised to put a graphical display of the possum box temperatures on the Possum TV site. I've now finally got around to doing this.

[click on image for full-sized version]

There should be a "box temps" item on the menu at the top of each page (you may need to do a refresh to see this) which leads to the new box temperatures page. Simply select the box(es) and date range you're interested in and click [Show Temperatures]. You should be rewarded with the appropriate graph.

Saturday, 17 January 2015

Update 17th Jan 2015

Kiki is doing well. The latest baby (her 12th!) is now bulging her pouch significantly.

Kiki (with the mystery orange powder in evidence) - 8th Jan 2015

Kiki hasn't been seen in any of the boxes for quite a while, but going by past form, we might see her come into Box 7 before too much longer. Last year, Kiki's baby (Oz) made his first appearance in Box 7 on Australia Day, and her latest baby will now be at a similar stage of development. So it's worth keeping your eye on the box cameras.