J. ([info]socraticomatic) wrote in [info]melbournemaniac,
@ 2007-10-28 23:05:00
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Possum rattles.
(I think this is Melbourne-related, because it's about possums and we didn't get possums *nearly* so much back in Perth...)

What the hell is with the sound possums make?

It's like a dry rattle meets an evil cackle.

It's taken me ten months of living in Melbourne to realise that the sound comes from possums. I've been hearing it really close by tonight and I went outside a few minutes ago and found the possum with a torch beam. It was perched on a tree branch and staring intently at a spot below it (didn't react when I shone the torch light right on it), but I couldn't find anything it might be staring at.

So is it a sound they make when they're defending their turf, or is it made by female possums in heat, or do they just think it sounds pretty, or what?

PS: My cat's obviously a Perth cat, she was really weirded out by the sound too!


Edit: Just then there was a little screeching noise instead ??

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[info]_dollydagger
2007-10-28 12:21 pm UTC (link)
I don't know, but i'd rather have squeaks & rattles from possums. Than UHH HHUU UUU HHHHUU from a desperate male koala outside my window at night. :S

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[info]socraticomatic
2007-10-28 01:10 pm UTC (link)
Plus koalas have CHLAMYDIA! (So, uh, don't have sex with it...)

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[info]oxymoronia
2007-10-29 05:22 am UTC (link)
Wah! Why didn't someone else tell me before?

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[info]socraticomatic
2007-10-29 07:02 am UTC (link)
*calls the authorities*

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[info]anemptyflight
2007-10-28 12:27 pm UTC (link)
you should hear them mating. that noise is fucked.

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[info]socraticomatic
2007-10-28 01:11 pm UTC (link)
I probably have, but attributed it to my housemate instead!

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[info]jamethiel_bane
2007-10-28 12:44 pm UTC (link)
Possum's reaction to predators is to freeze. It's called "playing possum". Even though you're shining a torch beam at it, it thinks that if it freezes, people can't see it.

The "heavy breathing" sound is standard territorial dominance/I'm here, this is my territory, see me be dominant. If they actually meet another possum and have a fight, there may be screeching noises. They also make the same noises during sex, but they must be ringtails (it's not brushtail mating season. I know because I have them in my wall/ceiling and the baby has grown up enough to leave.)

From what I can see, they make the rattle anytime. Particularly at 4am in the morning when they're coming home to bed.

Hope that helps. And welcome to your life of hating possums--it's part of being a melbournian

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[info]socraticomatic
2007-10-28 01:08 pm UTC (link)
Hey, I like them so far! I'm like, aww, a possum, it's the same size and general shape as my cat, *wants to pet it*

"Playing possum", of course! (d'uh)

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[info]mouse_girl_1989
2007-10-28 01:45 pm UTC (link)
cat vs possum isn't a pretty sight.

Little "tame" possums are cute...we get quite a few at the vet I work at.

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[info]socraticomatic
2007-10-28 02:31 pm UTC (link)
"cat vs possum isn't a pretty sight."

Who would win?

(My kitty doesn't go out at night, so I don't have to worry.)

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[info]toad1413
2007-10-28 07:34 pm UTC (link)
The possum, I'd say.

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[info]belindaanne
2007-10-28 08:45 pm UTC (link)
Being a wildlife rescuer I can tell you that majority of the time, the possums don't win :)

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[info]lord_of_fools
2007-10-28 01:18 pm UTC (link)
I apparently used to be scared of possums as a kid, but we don't have any in our area, so I don't have to worry any more! I don't remember having heard any possum noises though, where I have seen them. Weird.

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[info]toad1413
2007-10-28 07:33 pm UTC (link)
We've got about three generations of bushy-tailed possums living around the house.
They screech and yell at us if we've still got the lights on late at night. :(

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[info]bella_8
2007-10-28 11:04 pm UTC (link)
You should get that taken care of asap. My cousin had a friend whose whole house burnt down last year after possums chewed through the electrical wires.

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[info]socraticomatic
2007-10-29 02:12 am UTC (link)
Oh, it's never been in or particularly near the house, that I'm aware of. It's just that we have a lot of open space and trees around our house, and it just sounded very close-by last night because I was sitting near an open window. The possum(s) just seem to hang out in the trees.

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[info]in_n0sense
2007-10-29 07:20 am UTC (link)
there are 2 living in my lounge room wall. they make annoying scraping noises at night.

very annoying. i hope they leave before they die because it'll smell like no other if they don't.

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[info]hissy_kitten
2007-10-29 08:05 am UTC (link)
Baha possums. I have a massive gumtree over my place. We're a first floor flat with a covered balcony and tin roof. The possums either fling themselves or fall ... you can hear them go "*BANG!* *tumble tumble tumble* grrrrrrroowwwwl!" I tell you what - they are some FAT ASS possums!

We have a sheer drop to the ground from out bathroom window - when I first moved in a few months ago, one was growling when I was in the toilet... I squealed, it freaked me out so bad!

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[info]madamenilef
2007-10-29 01:32 pm UTC (link)
Hahaha in my dads house...he has possums. One night, there was this huge thunkthunkthunk sound and dad was like, "oh thats the possums getting laid". I was like, wtf? Another time, there was a wet patch on the carpet from a crack in the ceiling because a possum had taken a piss in the roof and it had seeped through the tiny cracks down onto the floor. I was like, ugh you bastards are getting REMOVED. We waited til one night when we were sure they were out and boarded up all the holes by torchlight, and they packed up and moved into the hayshed. They can piss all over that, the cows won't mind!

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