This is a brushtail possum, a native of Australia that was introduced to New Zealand (goodness knows why) where it has thrived, much to the detriment of the local flora and fauna. I think of it as New Zealand's raccoon. They only come out at night, and I've never seen a live one, but there are scads of them squished on the roadside. They are New Zealand's most hated animal as they kill the native plants, kill the native birds, and have introduced disease to domesticated livestock. They are a menace.
But, as P often points out, they are also quite cute:
In fact I think that is possibly the cutest thing I have ever seen!
I started a new job this week, and it requires me to wake up earlier than normal. I'm not much of a morning person, and I think this is why it took me a few mornings to realize the garbage can in the kitchen was not just falling over and spilling its contents in the middle of the night. The morning I found little tomato bits pretty far from the can I realized my "clumsy can" theory was flawed. While I have no proof other than a messy floor, I suspect we have been visited by the night possums. There is a window we (used to) keep open just off the kitchen that is the perfect height for possums and rules out dogs (cats are still an option, though not many cats would work that hard to eat my veggies).
So it's a little spooky to think of a possum (even an adorable one) lumbering around my kitchen, and I'm glad it only attacked the garbage and left the rest of the food and humans alone!
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