Pseudocheirus peregrinus
Silhouette: Michael Scroggie · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%
The common ringtail possum (Pseudocheirus peregrinus, Greek for "false hand" and Latin for "pilgrim" or "alien") is an Australian marsupial. The possum lives in a variety of habitats and eats a variety of leaves of both native and introduced plants, as well as flowers, fruits and sap. It also consumes caecotropes, which are material fermented in the caecum and expelled during the daytime when it is resting in a nest. This behaviour is called caecotrophy and is similar to that seen in rabbits.
The possum carries its young in a pouch, where it develops for 120–130 days before leaving. They are affected by land clearing, which destroys their habitat. The red fox is an introduced invasive species and predator that negatively impacts the possum.
The common ringtail possum is currently classified as one of the two living species in the genus Pseudocheirus; the species of Pseudochirulus and other ringtail genera were formerly also classified in Pseudocheirus. Several subspecies have been described:
Pseudocheirus peregrinus pereginus, the type subspecies based on a collection made at Endeavour River Pseudocheirus peregrinus convolutor, (Eastern ringtail possum or Southeastern... Wikipedia →
Call0:29
Australia · 2025
© Marc Anderson · XC1162877 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
Recording0:16
Australia · 2025
© ericboy · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording1:18
Australia · 2026
© Blake · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Noosa National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Royal National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Great Otway National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Maria Island National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 8 | Grampians National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 9 | Springbrook National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Taronga Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Cleland Wildlife Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Sydney Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Sea Life Paris Val d'Europe | 🇫🇷 France |
Possible
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Common Ringtail Possum sighting in Sydney on a given day, based on 872 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the most-seen of the 22 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June
In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Common Ringtail Possum in Sydney on a given day, against about 20% in January, July and October, the lowest months.
Between 7 and 10 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Common Ringtail Possum sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 pm and 6 am: it is seen both by day and at night.
3rd of 4
Of the 4 cities where we can rate Common Ringtail Possum sightings, Sydney ranks 3rd at about 30%. The best odds are in Brisbane (Australia, about 40%) and Melbourne (Australia, about 40%).
Same order: Diprotodontia
The closest relatives of the Common Ringtail Possum that you can see in Sydney (order Diprotodontia, Kangaroos, Possums, Wombats, and Allies) are Common Brushtail (about 20%), Swamp Wallaby (about 20%) and Eastern Grey Kangaroo (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Common Ringtail Possum is recorded against all the mammals logged in Sydney (872 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
