The Tasmanian pygmy possum (Cercartetus lepidus), also known as the little pygmy possum or tiny pygmy possum, is the world's smallest possum. It was first described by Oldfield Thomas in 1888, after he identified that a museum specimen labelled as an eastern pygmy possum in fact represented a species then unknown to science. The holotype resides in the Natural History Museum in London.
Description
Although it is a marsupial, the Tasmanian pygmy possum superficially resembles a dormouse, and it is the smallest of all the known species of possum. Their fur is soft and thick, and is fawn in colour over most of the body, fading to a pale grey on the underparts. They inhabit sclerophyll forest, mallee, and open heathland vegetation. A 2026 report revealed that pictures captured in 2006 in the Dhilba Guuranda–Innes National Park, located in the Yorke Peninsula of South Australia, may show two individuals. The journal Australian Zoologist noted that if true, the discovery would be very significant, as the species was previously not known to inhabit the area.
Behaviour
The Tasmanian pygmy possum is nocturnal and arboreal. It lives primarily in shrubland or forest undergrowth, and, although a good climber, rarely ventures into the higher branches of trees, presumably because this would make it more vulnerable to avian predators. Pygmy possums use strips of bark to construct dome-like nests in tree cavities or rotten wood, but are solitary animals that do not share their nests with other individuals except for their own young.
Breeding occurs throughout the year, although it may be more common in spring and summer. The female has a well-developed pouch containing four teats, which therefore limits the maximum size of a litter to this number. The young leave the pouch at around 42 days, although they may cling to the mother's fur and be carried about after this age. They leave the nest to fend for themselves at around 90 days of age.