Honey Possum: Tarsipedidae

Even though they are called honey possums, these animals do not eat honey. They feed upon the nectar and pollen from the flowers of plants such as myrtles (MER-tuhlz), proteas (PRO-tee-ahz), and banksias (BANK-see-ahz) that grow on the coast of southwestern Australia. Their teeth, which are stubby and short, are not used to chew or bite. In order to get the pollen and nectar, honey possums use their long tongue and tapered head to poke into the flowers. The end of their tongue Honey possums feed on the nectar from flowers, like this Banksia flower. (© Jiri Lochman/Lochman Transparencies. Reproduced by permission.) is like a brush, and they use it to pull the food into their mouth. In order to maintain themselves, honey possums must consume large amounts of their sugary food and spend most of their time searching for flowers.