Opossums are members of the marsupial order Didelphimorphia endemic to the Americas. The largest order of marsupials in the Western Hemisphere, it comprises 126 species in 18 genera. Opossums originated in South America and entered North America in the Great American Interchange following the connection of North and South America in the late Cenozoic.
The woolly mouse opossum or long-furred woolly mouse opossum, known locally as the cuíca, is a South American marsupial of the family Didelphidae. Its range includes central Colombia, Venezuela, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, eastern Peru, northern Bolivia, and northern Brazil. It was formerly assigned to the genus Micoureus, which was made a subgenus of Marmosa in 2009.
The bare-tailed woolly mouse opossum or short-furred woolly mouse opossum is a South American marsupial of the family Didelphidae. Its range includes Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia. It is found in tropical rainforest in the westernmost portion of the Amazon Basin and the eastern foothills of the Andes, at elevations up to 1634 m. It was formerly assigned to the genus Micoureus, which was made a subgenus of Marmosa in 2009. Some sources, such as the American Society of Mammalogists, believe this species is a synonym of the Isthmian mouse opossum.
Linnaeus's mouse opossum, also known as the common or murine mouse opossum, is a South American marsupial of the family Didelphidae.
The dwarf fat-tailed mouse opossum, also known as the velvety fat-tailed opossum is an opossum species from South America. It is endemic to Brazil, where it is found in cerrado and caatinga habitats. Its head-and-body length is about 141-212 mm, and its tail length is about 73-85 mm. Its diet is 44% arthropods; 75% of its diet consists of animals and animal products. Its ventral fur is entirely gray-based. Its hind foot is less than 14 mm, which is short for the genus.
Kalinowski's mastiff bat is a species of bat in the family Molossidae, the free-tailed bats. It is native to Peru and northern Chile. Relatively little is known about the species, but it is thought to be common in its range. It is sometimes seen in urban areas. Molecular sequencing data indicates that the closest relatives of M. kalinowski are members of another genus, Nyctinomops.
Kalinowski's Oldfield mouse is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae. It is found only in Peru.
The Aceramarca gracile opossum or Bolivian gracile opossum is a species of opossum. It is native to Bolivia and Peru, where it occurs in tropical elfin forest habitat.
Thylamys is a genus of opossums in the family Didelphidae. The premaxillae are rounded rather than pointed. The females lack a pouch. The females' nipples are arranged in two symmetrical rows on the abdomen. All species but T. macrurus store fat in their tails., although this is not necessarily true for all species in the genus. Fossils belonging to the genus date back to the Miocene, with the oldest specimens being found in the Cerro Azul Formation of Argentina and the Honda Group of Colombia. Genetic studies indicate that the genus may have originated around 14 million years ago.
The white-bellied fat-tailed mouse opossum is a species of opossum in the family Didelphidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile and Peru.
Gracilinanus is a genus of opossum in the family Didelphidae. It was separated from the genus Marmosa in 1989, and has since had the genera Cryptonanus, Chacodelphys, and Hyladelphys removed from it.
Karimi's fat-tailed mouse opossum is a species of opossum in the family Didelphidae. It is endemic to central and northeast Brazil, where it is found in the cerrado and caatinga at elevations from 300 to 1100 m. This opossum is crepuscular and mostly terrestrial; its omnivorous diet includes leaves, insects and small vertebrates. Its head-and-body length is about 95 millimeters, and its tail length is about 72 millimeters. It is very similar to T. pallidor. Its tail may be nonprehensile. The species is named after Iranian epidemiologist Y. Karimi. It is threatened by habitat destruction and fragmentation due to agriculture and ranching.
Tate's fat-tailed mouse opossum is a species of opossum in the family Didelphidae, named after American zoologist George Henry Hamilton Tate. It is found at elevations of 300 to 3,000 m along the coast of central Peru. The species has the northernmost range of any member of its genus. It has white ventral fur and short condylobasal and zygomatic lengths. T. pallidior is very similar.
The Quechuan mouse opossum, also called the western Amazonian mouse opossum, is a South American opossum species of the family Didelphidae. It was known from only two areas of montane forest on the eastern slopes of the Andes in Peru, at altitudes from 300 to 2700 m.: at the type locality in the Valle de Occobamba is in the southern area, in Cuzco Region, and in the northern area is in the vicinity of Moyobamba in San Martín Region. A 2014 survey found this species in Bolivia and Brazil. The northern Peruvian area has suffered from habitat destruction, but the southern area is not seriously degraded. The name Marmosa macrotarsus may be preoccupied, and the name may revert to Marmosa quichua.
Jan Kalinowski was a Polish explorer and collector of biological specimens who worked in Asia and South America. He was among the first Europeans to explore the fauna of the Korean Peninsula, collecting for the Branicki family of Poland from 1885 to 1888.
