Possums released into the wild

In early December 2021, we released four ringtail possum joeys into a Council bushland reserve with the help of their wildlife carer.

The four joeys are unrelated to one another and came into care as they required hand raising in the absence of their mothers. The possums arrived weighing around 80-90 grams and were released at around 400-450 grams after six months of being in care.

The possums were released with the drey that they were living in while under the care of their carer. A drey is their home or nest and this was released with them to provide them with a familiar location to return to if they ever find themselves separated or lost in the reserve.

The best site to release possums is in a nice bushy tree that provided them with some protection from other animals and in an area where they can primarily move from tree to tree without coming to the ground. Ensuring that they are as far away from roads and homes as possible was also a consideration for when we released our four joeys.

The possums were released in a calm environment, and even enjoyed a snack on fruit!

How did we do it? Check out the steps below...

This is one of the constructed dreys the possums were released in. On the morning of the release, the opening was soflty plugged with foliage for them to eat and covered by a hand towel. This ensured the possums couldn't leave the drey during transport or installation.

The dreys were secured in a sheet during transit to site. The sheet was removed onsite.

A hook at the top of the drey was attached to installed clouts on the tree.

The drey was secured in multiple spots.

After letting them settle in for half an hour, the hand towel covering the opening was removed.

We can see you! Once settled up in the tree, the team checked on them using a camera on an extendable pole (we didn't want to disrupt or scare them — hence the shaky photo!).

We continue to monitor the possums and their drey. On last inspection, they were still calling these dreys home!