Kathleen Smith's Lab |
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For many years, the Smith lab maintained a breeding colony of gray short-tailed opossums, Monodelphis domestica (Marsupialia: Didelphidae). We no longer have animals. These animals are native to the South American countries of Brazil and Bolivia, and lab colonies are increasingly common. M. domestica are typically grayish-brown in color, and like many smaller marsupials, are pouchless. Males in our colony weighed between 105 and 125 grams while females tended to be a bit smaller, between 75 and 90 grams. The opossum's natural diet is composed largely of insects; our colony was fed "fox food" supplemented weekly with fruit and/or mealworms. For normal housing, standard rat cages are suitable, and the animals should be provided with a food bowl, nesting house, nesting material (shredded paper), and a water bottle. Smaller animals are quite the escape artists, so tight fitting lids are a necessity. We kept the animals on a 12 hour light/dark schedule and maintained a temperature of about 74 degrees F with an ideal humidity between 50 and 60%.
M. domestica are solitary in the wild and must be kept in indivdual cages except when breeding. When breeding, males and females must be introduced carefully, and injury, and even death of one of the two animals is common. Our husbandry and laboratory protocols were published here: Keyte, AL, and Smith, KK. (2008) "Opossum (Monodelphis domestica): A Marsupial Development Model. (Published online)" In: Emerging Model Organisms: A laboratory manual. Cold Spring Harbor Press, Cold Spring Harbor, NY. Pp. 557-575 link (email for reprint) An excellent overview of the biology of Monodelphis domestica may be found in T. E. Macrini, Monodelphis domestica. Mammalian Species, no. 760, pp. 1-8 (American Society of Mammalogists) As cute as they are, we do not recommend Monodelphis as a household pet. |
Research
click here for important references on Monodelphis biology and husbandry.
Our husbandry and laboratory protocols were published here: Keyte, AL, and Smith, KK. (2008) "Opossum (Monodelphis domestica): A Marsupial Development Model. (Published online)" In: Emerging Model Organisms: A laboratory manual. Cold Spring Harbor Press, Cold Spring Harbor, NY. Pp. 557-575 link (email for reprint) |
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