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Job:11945 Title: WKY1 50 Wacky Animals 9781633222953WKY1 50 Wacky Animals_Interior.indd 39 22/12/16 12:05 pm
TextMore About Opossums
A “dead” opossum will stay unconscious for up to four
hours. Before playing dead, an opossum hisses and
growls at predators. It produces extra saliva in its mouth,
then blows the drool out of its nose, hoping the bubbles
make it look sick and not like a good snack.
Opossums aren’t good at fighting back, but they can
fool their enemies by playing dead. Danger makes an
opossum go into a shock-like state where its body
freezes up. Its stiff body will lay sideways with legs out
and mouth open. The opossum even releases a green,
stinky fluid that smells like a dead, rotting animal. Since
many predators are used to chasing their prey, they
leave the “dead” opossum alone.
Playing Dead
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