Anderson's mouse opossum

Marmosa andersoni

Dines mostly on insects and fruits, but also bird eggs, lizards, and small rodents.

Lives in the Andes, Cusco, southern Peru.

Anderson’s mouse opossum is a nocturnal and probably arboreal (tree-dwelling) creature. It is omnivorous, as it has been seen eating fruits and insects, but also small lizards, bird eggs, and some rodents. It is native only to Peru. Anderson’s mouse opossum is particularly vulnerable due to its intrinsically small range, and presumed tiny population. Despite the isolation of the region in which the specimens were found, the habitat still faces a number of threats, including expanding agriculture, overgrazing and unsustainable timber extraction. Such threats are likely to impact greatly on this tree-dwelling species.