Are ocelots and opossums in cahoots?

Camera traps show that ocelots and opossums might be more friend than foe. In both Peru and Panama, new data shows these animals may work together, puzzling scientists.

“I wonder how many of these weird interactions are happening that we’re unaware of because they’re difficult to record in the field,” said Dumas Gálvez, a Panamanian researcher at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and the University of Panama.

Gálvez and researchers in Peru captured four occasions of ocelots (Leopardus pardalis) and common opossums (Didelphis marsupialis) associating—the first observations of their kind. They showed that opossums are attracted to and often rub their bodies against ocelot scent cues like urine. Researchers think there may be an unexpected benefit to both species when it comes to hunting.

The ecology of fear

Gálvez was studying seed dispersers in the Panamanian rainforest, specifically the Central American agouti (Dasyprocta punctata) and how the rodent responded to ocelot urine. Because ocelots prey on agoutis, Gálvez thought agoutis would avoid foraging for or removing seeds in areas with ocelot smells—which he found evidence for and published in Behavioral Ecology.

He assumed that project was finished until he went to the 2024 Melbourne Behavioural Ecology Conference, where he met a research team from Peru. They were presenting a poster on preliminary findings of ocelot and opossum associations.

Lead author Ettore Camerlenghi recalled presenting their findings when Gálvez stopped by. “He mentioned that he had set up camera traps using ocelot scent and to his surprise, captured numerous videos of opossums rubbing against the scent,” Camerlenghi said.

Gálvez returned to Panama and found the images of the opossum biting and pulling at the fabric with ocelot urine. He continued to comb through the camera trap data and was shocked at what he found. “I just remembered one camera,” he said. “But I was really surprised when I went back and found it on all the cameras.”

The researchers decided to collaborate together on a new study, published recently in Ecosphere. “It’s a nice example of how science often works through serendipitous events, curiosity, and collaboration,” said Isabel Damas-Moreira, another of the study’s coauthors.

Unlikely pairs in unlikely places

There are other examples of interspecies hunting partnerships, such as badgers (Taxidea taxus) and coyotes (Canis latrans) collaborating to hunt burrowing animals in North America. But the researchers still find this mutual tolerance between ocelots and opossums “puzzling.” While badgers can hold their own against coyotes, opossums can easily become ocelot food.

Camerlenghi speculated that similar to badgers and coyotes, they could be better at hunting cooperatively rather than individually. Opossums are immune to some snake venom, so they may collaborate to hunt these reptiles—though they haven’t yet found direct evidence of cooperative snake hunting.

Another potential reason for their association could be masking each other’s scent cues. Gálvez’s initial thought was that if the opossums smelled more like an ocelot, they’d have protection from other predators. But the scent masking can also go the other way. Opossums are notoriously smelly—ocelots could be using opossum stench as a cover to more easily approach nervous prey, the study authors speculated.

While there’s a lot the researchers don’t know, they continue to investigate these associations. “The regional scale of this is interesting—it’s not only happening in Peru, but also further north in Panama,” Gálvez said.

He is interested in associations between other felids whose ranges overlap with opossums, like the puma (Puma concolor). He also wants to see how opossums on Coiba Island—a national park in Panama without any ocelots or other predators—respond to ocelot urine.

Gálvez is still researching ocelots, but his local ocelot urine supplier—a zoo in Panama City that houses the animals—isn’t producing like it used to. He says it’s easier to just buy puma urine on Amazon.