h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Cute Entry,
But, there is a much darker side to these friendly little blighters.
I used to live in Benicia, California (ex-state capital).
One of the damn things chewed it's way through the screen door in the middle
of the night and headed for the catfood tray sat by the fridge in the kitchen.
Wandering what all the noise was about I got up to investigate-
Silence and darkness greated me-
Still as I'd been awoken, the word food and thoughts of the pleasures of fridge-world captured by attention.
So, bleary-eyed I stumbed barefoot into the kitchen and opened the fridge door,
kicking what I thought was the cat out of the way.
It hissed at me, as the light caught it's eyes- but this was no feline-
It's bloated red rat eyes
stared up at me in casual hatred-
Struck by a combination of shock, terror and hunger I watched the little blighter casually
leave the kitchen and crawl underneath the couch in the living room-
The dog was not amused- Possum had checked in and was there for the night-
Even a touch of quick broom therapy didn't seem to work.

In New Zealand they have reached plague proportions.

They carry tuberculocsis (TB) which can be transmitted to other animals such as cows.

A lot of NZ birds do not fly and they and their nests are easy prey to the possum.

New Zealand pest control agencies spend millions of dollars a year in futile attempts to eradicate them.

On highways you come across road kill possums by the 100s.

The early Pommie settlers who introduced them in the vain hope of starting a fur trade should have themselves been shot.