Hands on Tauranga offers students stimulating and original learning opportunities with real museum objects that support the New Zealand curriculum at primary and secondary school level.
A taxidermied possum. The Australian brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula), a cat-sized marsupial, was introduced to Aotearoa New Zealand in 1837 for the fur trade. It has become the country’s most damaging animal pest, wreaking havoc on native forests. In the early 2000s, it was estimated that there were 50 to 70 million possums in New Zealand.
Find out how a possum is taxidermied here
> https//australian.museum/learn/teachers/classroom-activities/taxidermy/
Date: 21st century
max dimension:
subject area: Social Science, Science
specific themes: Aotearoa, pests, non-native
handling collection number: HC229
School journal link: An article 'The Possum Problem' from the Level 3 August 2017 School Journal is available to download here http://instructionalseries.tki.org.nz/Instructional-Series/School-Journal/School-Journal-Level-3-August-2017/The-Possum-Problem
Why not get your hands on: Kauri Snail shells HC114. Possums are a predator of the native, endangered kauri snail http://www.handsontauranga.co.nz/hot-items/science/kauri-snail-shells-hc114/
