The individual and social behavior of 73 captive opossums, Didelphis marsupialis virginiana, was studied. The patterns of behavior seen in Didelphis appear generalized, correlating with the opossum's primitive morphology and taxonomic status. Diverse locomotor patterns, arboreal modifications, and highly unselective food habits explain in part the diversity of habitats frequented by Didelphis in North America. A well developed attitude of passive defense is seen in interspecific encounters and the adaptive significance of such behavior is considered. Social behavior is poorly developed and, with the exception of mating, most intraspecific encounters between adults are agonistic in nature. Although marsupials are usually not successful in competition with placentals, the opossum is an obvious exception. Presumably, its generalized behavior has allowed Didelphis to exploit a variety of food sources and habitat types. This, together with a high reproductive potential, may account for the evolutionary persistence of the species, and its current ecological success.
The American Midland Naturalist has been published for 90 years by the University of Notre Dame. The connotations of Midland and Naturalist have broadened and its geographic coverage now includes North America with occasional articles from other continents. The old image of naturalist has changed and the journal publishes what Charles Elton aptly termed "scientific natural history" including field and experimental biology. Its significance and breadth of coverage are evident in that the American Midland Naturalist is among the most frequently cited journals in publications on ecology, mammalogy, herpetology, ornithology, ichthyology, parasitology, aquatic and invertebrate biology and other biological disciplines.
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The American Midland Naturalist
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