It is hard to guess what a Rufous mouse opossum weights. But we have the answer:
An adult Rufous mouse opossum (Marmosa lepida) on average weights 14 grams (0.03 lbs).
The Rufous mouse opossum is from the family Didelphidae (genus: Marmosa). When reaching adult age, they grow up to 10.8 cm (0′ 5″). Usually, Rufous mouse opossums have 5 babies per litter.
As a reference: An average human weights in at 62 kg (137 lbs) and reaches an average size of 1.65m (5′ 5″). Humans spend 280 days (40 weeks) in the womb of their mother and reach around 75 years of age.
The rufous mouse opossum (Marmosa lepida) or little rufous mouse opossum is an opossum species from South America. The species has been found in Bolivia, Surinam, French Guinea, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru and Surinam in lowland tropical rainforest at altitudes from 100 to 1000 m. It is presumed to feed on insects and fruit, like its close relatives.It is considered a monotype. It is smaller in size and has a brighter red colored fur, distinguishing it from other congeners.Though the species has been known for over a century, very few specimens have been studied, most of these from areas below 600m and taken from western edges of the Amazon basin and Guianas. Its dorsal pelage is reddish-brown and its ventral pelage is grayish. Researchers believe this coloring is product of adaptation to a humid forest environment.
Animals of the same family as a Rufous mouse opossum
We found other animals of the Didelphidae family:
- Emilia’s gracile opossum with a weight of 7 grams
- Grayish mouse opossum with a weight of 47 grams
- Chacoan pygmy opossum with a size of 8.9 cm (0′ 4″)
- Gray slender opossum with a weight of 54 grams
- Brown four-eyed opossum with a weight of 365 grams
- Brazilian gracile opossum with a weight of 29 grams
- Virginia opossum bringing 2.46 kilos (5.42 lbs) to the scale
- Panama slender opossum with a weight of 29 grams
- Agile gracile opossum with a weight of 22 grams
- Handley’s slender opossum with a weight of 30 grams
Animals with the same weight as a Rufous mouse opossum
As a comparison, here are some other animals that weight as much as the Marmosa lepida:
- Pleasant gerbil bringing 13 grams to the scale
- Hairy big-eared bat bringing 12 grams to the scale
- Philippine forest horseshoe bat bringing 13 grams to the scale
- Isabelle’s ghost bat bringing 12 grams to the scale
- Mexican free-tailed bat bringing 12 grams to the scale
- Tickell’s bat bringing 16 grams to the scale
- Roberts’s flat-headed bat bringing 14 grams to the scale
- Spotted free-tailed bat bringing 15 grams to the scale
- Striped hairy-nosed bat bringing 13 grams to the scale
- Central pebble-mound mouse bringing 12 grams to the scale
Animals with the same size as a Rufous mouse opossum
Not that size really matters, but it makes things comparable. So here are a couple of animals that are as big as Rufous mouse opossum:
- Panamint chipmunk with a size of 11.6 cm (0′ 5″)
- Boehm’s bush squirrel with a size of 12.5 cm (0′ 5″)
- Red-cheeked dunnart with a size of 11 cm (0′ 5″)
- Gould’s mouse with a size of 10.8 cm (0′ 5″)
- Agile gracile opossum with a size of 9.4 cm (0′ 4″)
- Northwestern deer mouse with a size of 9.3 cm (0′ 4″)
- Western mouse with a size of 10.2 cm (0′ 5″)
- Philippine tarsier with a size of 11.7 cm (0′ 5″)
- Ash-grey mouse with a size of 8.9 cm (0′ 4″)
- Serra do Mar grass mouse with a size of 9.6 cm (0′ 4″)
Animals with the same litter size as a Rufous mouse opossum
Here is a list of animals that have the same number of babies per litter (5) as a Rufous mouse opossum: