Opossums are opportunistic omnivores — they will eat almost anything they can find. That flexible appetite is exactly what makes them such valuable neighbors. Wherever they live, whether rural, suburban, or wild, opossums quietly clean up pests and waste that most people would rather never see.
What Opossums Eat
- Insects and other invertebrates — cockroaches, crickets, beetles, and slugs.
- Snails, which they seem to genuinely love.
- Mice, rats, and other small rodents.
- Fallen, overripe fruit and carrion — nature’s leftovers.
- Ticks. A single opossum can groom away large numbers of ticks that latch onto it, helping reduce their spread.
Nature’s Sanitation Crew
Because they clean up rotting fruit, dead animals, and harmful insects, opossums act as a kind of natural clean-up crew wherever they roam. By eating rodents and the pests that carry disease, they help keep yards and gardens healthier. They are not aggressive, they do not dig up lawns the way some animals do, and they rarely stay in one place long enough to become a nuisance.
Why They Visit Your Neighborhood
An opossum passing through your yard is usually drawn by three simple things: water, food left out for pets at night, and fruit that has dropped from trees. Remove those temptations and the animal will typically move along on its own. Leave them, and you may find you have a helpful, if temporary, pest-control volunteer.