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Diet of opossums #877998

Asked July 20, 2024, 9:47 AM EDT

I’ve read conflicting information about opossums eating ticks. Some studies report they do eat a lot of ticks so are very beneficial to home owners property, other studies report there is no evidence that opossums eat ticks. Are there any MSU Extension studies on the subject?

Clare County Michigan

Expert Response

Hello Carla,

I am a fisheries biologist by training and have not done any research on terrestrial wildlife, but I did not find any MSU Extension studies related to opossums eating ticks.


However, I did find this article from Illinois Extension. It provides a balanced explanation of the controversy and the shortfalls of the original study. 


Reassessing the opossum-tick relationship: Is it a good idea to attract opossum's to your yard? | Good Growing | Illinois Extension | UIUC


Dan O'Keefe

MSU Extension 

Michigan Sea Grant

An Ask Extension Expert Replied August 12, 2024, 3:42 PM EDT

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