Bushwalk Australia

From ABC Tasmania

A Canadian researcher has discovered that possums are eating Forty Spotted Pardalote chicks.

Amanda Edworthy has set up motion sensing camera on Bruny island in southern Tasmania to monitor nestboxes.

Ms Edworthy was surprised to find a possum raiding a nest.

"We've had one confirmed predation event so far and that's been a brushtail possum,"

"And that possum has climbed up to tree cavity that's quite low and large and reached out and eaten one nestling at a time it took all four of them," she said.

The nestboxes will now be made possum proof.

Very strange behaviour for an animal that is so specifically adapted for herbivory. Certainly makes you wonder what happens in all the other species' nests that aren't being monitored...

If you watch any dominant species closely you will see evolution in progress. Sad as it is...

Brushtail possums are known omnivores, and commonly eat birds and their eggs. It shouldn't surprise a researcher.
This item on sugar gliders and endangered swift parrots in Tas is interesting too -> http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-12-16/n ... ection=tas

Nothing a brushtailed possum will do could ever surprise me. They are evil incarnate.

Yeah possums are kinda the psychopaths of the forest.

Believe it or not but I had a pet ringtail possum as a kid and it used to nibble on the discarded chop bones of my dinner.