Marsupial on 35th Street

New York Times ^ | January 2004 | Nora Krug

[js1138]

Heard Of The City Mouse? Try Bigger & Far Uglier

By: Nora Krug - www.nytimes.com

January 2004

New York - What was that furry creature parked on a ledge at 135 East 35th Street? A big rat? A cat? A small bear? For nearly eight hours, a quiet corner in Murray Hill was transformed into a kind of temporary zoo, as passers-by stopped to gawk and guess the identity of the long-snouted cat-size animal that paced along a narrow stone ledge about nine feet over a brownstone garden, sniffing, shaking and yawning.

"I was thinking it was a hedgehog, because of the Beatrix Potter books," said Jennifer Gould, who may have been the first to spot it, at 7:30am.

"I thought someone had put a giant statue of a rat in front of the building," said Lynn Peraza.

The animal was, in fact, an opossum - and not entirely an alien in Manhattan.

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NYTimes.com link

[js1138]

Even Manhattan has vicious wild animals roaming the streets.

[goldstategop]

I've seen an occasional opposum crossing the street here now and then. They're easily mistaken for a rat.

[Leroy S. Mort]

One lives under my porch and eats the leftover catfood every night. Maybe I should ask for a Reality TV show to spellbind New Yorkers. Yawn....

[ikka]

Even Manhattan has vicious wild animals roaming the streets.

Yes, but they are usually wearing do-rags and have their oversized pants barely hanging on.

They also have opossums.

[RightWingAtheist]

I lived in southern Ontario, which is full of opossums, yet I never once spotted one. I did see some in New Zealand, however, where, without any predators, they are a real pest. The NZ government, which is one of the most conservation-minded in the world (and quite resonably so, when you consider the uniqueness and fragility of its wildlife) gives citizens the right to shoot as many of them as they damn please (they aren't native to New Zealand anyways, and have been partly responsible for the near-extinction of several bird species).

[Robe]

We had a new pilot (from Maine, i think)sign on to the Texas oil company I was flying for way back then. One early one morning ('bout 5:30)I arrived at the rear door to the hanger.
There was my new co-pilot throwing rocks in to the dumpster, and looking terrified. He said " don't go near the dumpster, there's the biggest rat I ever saw in there!!
I looked in to see a very disturbed possum hissing back at us.
I said " Possum, this here is a Yankee, Yankee this here is a Possum"
There now is some fellow from Maine trying to explain how he got the good old fashioned Southern nickname "Possum"

[theDentist]

Even Manhattan has vicious wild animals roaming the streets.

Really? I thought she spent spare time in Chappaqua

[dfwgator]

Marsupial on 35th Street

Sounds like the title to an old Bob Dylan song.

[Constitution Day]

*shaking my head*

Yankees. What else can you say.

[skinkinthegrass]

...but they are usually wearing do-rags and have their oversized pants barely hanging on...They also have opossums.

Most of the time...they're in the middle of the road, hit by cars...(the possums &/or political moderates. :)

[skinkinthegrass]

I thought she spent spare time in Chappaqua.

...&/or reading stolen FBI Files.

[VadeRetro]

I don't believe even idiot New Yorkers don't know a 'possum. Sad.

[balrog666]

Serve with red wine.

[stainlessbanner]

The fact a possum on the run qualifies as news in N.Y. is amazing.
Jokes on them.

[PallMal]

Amazing why these Manhattanites didn't recognize what this animal was.

You see them all the time in Queens, either walking between houses at night, or as road kill on the Grand Central Parkway.

[Tijeras_Slim]

Imagine what they'd think of an Armadillo.

[stainlessbanner]

Road Trip?
< grin >

[Jonah Hex]

Imagine what they'd think of an Armadillo.

'possum on the half-shell...

[Constitution Day]

I bet they'd call Homeland Security on that one! LOL!

[Allegra]

Next thing you know, we'll have badgers roaming the streets.

Badger, badger, badger, badger...mushroom, mushrooom...

SNAKE!