The opossum has become a popular part of the internet, with memes dedicated to the funny-looking animal across the web. In the wild, an Idaho researcher says the scruffy marsupials deserve our respect.

Donna Holmes Parks PhD is an associate professor in the biology department at the University of Idaho, who has studied opossums since the 1970s. She said people probably shouldn't keep them as pets but they aren't dangerous.

"Since they live in so many people's backyards, I think it's nice for people not to be afraid of them," said Holmes Parks, "because they're really harmless, unless you go grabbing one, and they're not difficult wildlife to deal with. You can handle wild ones if you know how."

Holmes Parks said the sudden interest in opossums is fascinating, if also a bit confounding. But this could also be a moment for people to learn more about these creatures.

Opossums in the United States originate in the Southeast. While they typically don't like rocky areas, the marsupials can be found on the West Coast.

Cousin to creatures such as koalas and kangaroos, opossums are the only marsupials found in North America. The rest live in Australia.

Holmes Parks said they do well in suburban areas and will eat compost and dead animals, but aren't pests like rats.

"They're kind of recyclers of the world," said Holmes Parks, "and they're just good at taking advantage of whatever circumstances they find themselves in."

She described them as living fossils, most likely resembling the first mammals that walked the earth.

And that may be the extent of their purpose, so to speak, which Holmes Parks said is just fine.

"It's not like they're a keystone predator or something like a wolf or important like a moose," said Holmes Parks, "but they're just part of the richness of our environment, as far as I'm concerned."

Some Hoosiers want Indiana lawmakers to rethink proposed legislation that would usurp existing local laws that prohibit retailers from selling puppies. Legislators listened to emotional testimony during a 3.5 hour hearing on the proposed law, which was revived from last year's session.

Dr. Scott Robinson, a physician and attorney who also founded a low-cost spay and neuter center in Indianapolis, told the Senate Agriculture Committee there's no mystery about House Bill 1412. Pet stores support the legislation because they're trying to keep themselves from being forced out of business.

"I've been involved in animal welfare for a long time, and I've seen over the years many wolves in sheep's clothing and that's what this is about," Robinson argued. "There's plenty of regulations that can be made to monitor puppy mills, but this is designed to usurp local control of communities and protect pet stores."

Robinson said the issue is not a Republican or Democrat problem -- regardless of party affiliation, people care about their animals. If passed, the bill will overturn bans on retail puppy sales in 21 Indiana communities. Proponents say the law would allow pet stores the option to sell puppies as long as the animals are from ethically sourced suppliers.

Lori Wilson, CEO of Uncle Bill's Pet Centers, who operates six stores throughout Indiana, supports the proposed legislation.

"We are very transparent. We're open door," she intoned. "Being USDA, you have to be open door, so we are very picky. I actually go to many of the kennels to make sure that they are exactly what we want them to be and need them to be, to be able to source humanely and ethically raised puppies."

Opponents say the bill lacks funding to support the agencies tasked with enforcing laws. This is not a budget year for Indiana lawmakers, so any funding to support the proposed mandate would not come before 2025.


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Researchers at Colorado State University are making headway in identifying how osteoarthritis progresses in horses, and their findings could one day also help people who develop the degenerative disease after injuring a knee, elbow or shoulder.

Lynn Pezzanite, doctor of veterinary medicine and assistant professor at Colorado State University, said the disease affects nearly eight in ten horses over age 15.

"It's the most common disorder affecting joints in horses, as well as in people, and one of the most common disorders that we treat overall in horses. It's one of the most common reasons horses present to a veterinarian," she said.

Pezzanite and her team are hoping to find markers of how osteoarthritis develops in horses by studying individual immune cells in joint fluid. Those markers may provide insights on how veterinarians can use gene therapies or other treatments at specific stages to slow the disease's progression.

Typically, people and animals only show signs of osteoarthritis at advanced stages, when they experience joint pain. Pezzanite believes information in immune cells might expose the disease much earlier, even before evidence appears on X-rays.

"Our goal with this work is to look at those very early stages in horses that have post-traumatic arthritis, so that we can determine that tipping point of when we should be intervening or not. And hopefully this will inform treatment in humans as well," she continued.

Pezzanite said people could benefit from this research if the immune markers can be translated across species. Physicians would have better information about when to intervene before full-blown osteoarthritis develops.

"If you're playing soccer and twist your knee, tear your ACL, we would potentially be able to take a sample of that joint fluid and know whether you're going to develop arthritis or not," she explained. "Which would allow us to be more aggressive in treatment of that joint."

Spring brings about migration season for birds, but home and workplace windows can often prevent them from getting to their final destination.

Wayne State University has been awarded a grant by The Detroit Zoological Society to conduct research on bird mortality from window strikes.

Ava Landraf, conservation and research coordinator with Detroit Bird Alliance, said more than half of the bird window strikes happen at low-rise and residential buildings, and not on skyscrapers as most would imagine.

"Most people don't know that bird-window collisions are the second highest cause of direct human-caused mortality of birds. And this is surpassed only by outdoor and feral cats," Landraf said.

The Smithsonian Institution finds many bird window strikes happen because of less darkness at night and an increase in artificial light caused by streetlights and lighted office buildings.

The research shows 33% of the world's population cannot see the Milky Way galaxy due to light pollution, and for birds that navigate using the stars, this hazy sky is having deadly results.

Landraf said Wayne State University faculty and students have had concerns about bird strikes over the years, but the opportunity to do something about it never materialized until they got this grant. She added it's scary to find a small number of dead birds around the campus, knowing there are many window strikes.

"A lot of the birds will hit a window, have that head trauma and then, fly off and then die later," Landraf said. "Even if they hit the window and they die right there, they're either picked up and eaten by a scavenger or the building caretakers just sweep the birds right up."

Based on the Detroit Bird Alliance's findings from tracking bird strikes, CollidEscape, an adhesive film that reduces reflections outside, was applied on the first- and second-floor windows of the university's Law School building as part of the research. She suggested people contact the Bird Alliance for other potential solutions, and also suggested checking the website birdmapper.org to see which areas experience more bird-window strikes around the world.


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