Possums come out to play in Melbourne: Suburb hotspots revealed

WHETHER you love them or hate them, possums across Melbourne are coming out to play, posing for selfies and coming up for a pat. See which suburbs are possum hotspots.

POSSUMS across Melbourne are coming out to play.

Whether you love them or hate them, these cheeky marsupials are increasingly venturing down from the treetops to interact with people in the city and suburbs.

Posing for selfies and coming up for a pat, these ordinarily cautious creatures are becoming friendlier.

Bayside suburbs including St Kilda, Brighton and Bentleigh are a hotspot for possums, with significant numbers also spotted in the eastern suburbs of Blackburn and Croydon.

Forest Hill resident Steve McGuiness said he gets nightly visits by one possum which would routinely sit next to him outside and even climb up his leg.

“It was extremely friendly and would stay around for a few hours each night at the same time every night,” he said. “It’s still around but doesn’t get as close because it has a baby on its back now.”

Steve McGuinness says this cheeky possum frequently visits him at his Forest Hill home.

A possum stands tall — well, for a possum — in Flagstaff Gardens. Picture: Jason Edwards

The friendliest possums in Melbourne pose for selfies in Flagstaff Gardens, CBD. Picture: Jason Edwards

The friendliest possums in Melbourne pose for selfies in Flagstaff Gardens. Picture: Jason Edwards

A possum in Flagstaff Gardens. Picture: Jason Edwards

Sofia Walhalla, 24, takes a selfie with a friendly possum in Flagstaff Gardens. Picture: Jason Edwards

Flagstaff Gardens in Melbourne’s CBD is another popular spot, with possums crawling out from the trees to meet passers-by as night falls.

It’s estimated more than 45,000 possums call the City of Melbourne home, with about 12 possums per hectare across the municipality.

And as breeding season begins, that number will rise. Right now, possums are trying to find a mate ahead of peak mating season in May. And once their young are born, they will seek a place to keep their babies warm over winter.

Paul the Possum Whisperer said ringtail possums were “invading houses more and more” in recent years.

The unwelcomed house guests will take advantage of any roof opening, he said.

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TOP SIX POSSUM SUBURBS

ST KILDA

BRIGHTON

BENTLEIGH

MALVERN EAST

BLACKBURN

CROYDON

The friendliest possums in Melbourne pose for selfies, like this one in Flagstaff Gardens. Picture: Jason Edwards

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Mooroolbark resident Tim Neumann said he is woken up weekly by the scampering animals which screech outside his window. “They are incessant and continue this cry for over an hour,” he said.

Roof cavities aren’t the only places you will find possums. They make a home out of almost any space.

Last year, a possum was found living in a toilet roll dispenser in Yarra Bend Park.

City of Melbourne’s Environmental portfolio chair Cr Cathy Oke said possums seek shelter within properties more this time of year as their treed habitats change.

“People may notice possums more at this time of year when deciduous trees lose their leaves,” she said.

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