How big does a Common brushtail possum get? Here is an overview over the average adult age:
A grown Common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) reaches an average size of 47.4 cm (1′ 7″).
When born, they have an average size of 0 cm (0′ 0″). Usually, they reach an age of 14.67 years. A full-grown exemplary reaches roughly 2.69 kg (5.94 lbs). Talking about reproduction, Common brushtail possums have 1 babies about 1 times per year. The Common brushtail possum (genus: Trichosurus) is a member of the family Phalangeridae.
As a reference: Humans reach an average body size of 1.65m (5′ 5″) while carrying 62 kg (137 lbs). A human woman is pregnant for 280 days (40 weeks) and on average become 75 years old.
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The common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula, from the Greek for “furry tailed” and the Latin for “little fox”, previously in the genus Phalangista) is a nocturnal, semi-arboreal marsupial of the family Phalangeridae, native to Australia, and the second-largest of the possums.Like most possums, the common brushtail possum is nocturnal. It is mainly a folivore, but has been known to eat small mammals such as rats. In most Australian habitats, leaves of eucalyptus are a significant part of the diet, but rarely the sole item eaten. The tail is prehensile and naked on its lower underside. The four colour variations are silver-grey, brown, black, and gold.It is the Australian marsupial most often seen by city dwellers, as it is one of few that thrive in cities and a wide range of natural and human-modified environments. Around human habitations, common brushtails are inventive and determined foragers with a liking for fruit trees, vegetable gardens, and kitchen raids.The common brushtail possum was introduced to New Zealand in the 1850s to establish a fur industry, but in the mild subtropical climate of New Zealand, and with few to no natural predators, it thrived to the extent that it became a major agricultural and conservation pest.
Animals of the same family as a Common brushtail possum
We found other animals of the Phalangeridae family:
- Mountain cuscus with a size of 40.7 cm (1′ 5″)
- Northern common cuscus with a size of 42.4 cm (1′ 5″)
- Ornate cuscus bringing 1.79 kilos (3.95 lbs) to the scale
- Ground cuscus with a size of 45.3 cm (1′ 6″)
- Woodlark cuscus with a size of 37.2 cm (1′ 3″)
- Black-spotted cuscus with 1 babies per litter
- Short-eared possum with 1 babies per litter
- Rothschild’s cuscus bringing 1.37 kilos (3.02 lbs) to the scale
- Silky cuscus with a size of 41.2 cm (1′ 5″)
- Admiralty Island cuscus with 1 babies per litter
Animals with the same size as a Common brushtail possum
Not that size really matters, but it makes things comparable. So here are a couple of animals that are as big as Common brushtail possum:
- Tres Marias rabbit with a size of 42.8 cm (1′ 5″)
- Rüppell’s fox with a size of 46 cm (1′ 7″)
- Lesser spot-nosed monkey with a size of 41 cm (1′ 5″)
- Tufted ground squirrel with a size of 40.6 cm (1′ 4″)
- Nine-banded armadillo with a size of 44.3 cm (1′ 6″)
- Maned sloth with a size of 54.9 cm (1′ 10″)
- Greater spot-nosed monkey with a size of 54.9 cm (1′ 10″)
- Raffles’ banded langur with a size of 51.4 cm (1′ 9″)
- Bushy-tailed mongoose with a size of 44.6 cm (1′ 6″)
- Pale fox with a size of 43 cm (1′ 5″)
Animals with the same litter size as a Common brushtail possum
Here is a list of animals that have the same number of babies per litter (1) as a Common brushtail possum:
- African sheath-tailed bat
- Horsfield’s tarsier
- Tana River mangabey
- Lorentz’s mosaic-tailed rat
- Dusky pademelon
- Asian golden cat
- Pallas’s squirrel
- Doria’s tree-kangaroo
- Scaly-tailed possum
- Bonnet macaque
Animals with the same life expectancy as a Common brushtail possum
Completely different animals, but becoming as old as a Common brushtail possum:
- Beira (antelope) with an average maximal age of 14 years
- Sugar glider with an average maximal age of 14 years
- L’Hoest’s monkey with an average maximal age of 16 years
- Nubian ibex with an average maximal age of 17 years
- Ground cuscus with an average maximal age of 12 years
- Red slender loris with an average maximal age of 16.33 years
- Mountain reedbuck with an average maximal age of 12.25 years
- Meerkat with an average maximal age of 12.5 years
- Pallas’s squirrel with an average maximal age of 16.08 years
- Brown hyena with an average maximal age of 17 years
Animals with the same weight as a Common brushtail possum
As a comparison, here are some other animals that weight as much as the Trichosurus vulpecula:
- Small Indian civet with a weight of 2.95 kilos (6.5 lbs)
- Orinoco agouti with a weight of 2.65 kilos (5.84 lbs)
- Black lemur with a weight of 2.48 kilos (5.47 lbs)
- Sanford’s brown lemur with a weight of 2.39 kilos (5.27 lbs)
- Egyptian mongoose with a weight of 3 kilos (6.61 lbs)
- Sand cat with a weight of 2.82 kilos (6.22 lbs)
- Meller’s mongoose with a weight of 2.24 kilos (4.94 lbs)
- Corsac fox with a weight of 2.62 kilos (5.78 lbs)
- Hoary bamboo rat with a weight of 2.45 kilos (5.4 lbs)
- Giant forest genet with a weight of 2.74 kilos (6.04 lbs)
