brushtail possum

• brush-tailed possum

From brush + tail (originally tailed) + possum. See brushtail.

brushtail possum (plural brushtail possums)

1. A nocturnal, arboreal, Australian possum, Trichosurus vulpecula, that has a furred tail with a naked tip.
   • 1985, Peter Carey, Illywhacker, Faber & Faber 2003, p. 56:

     The southerly caught the tree and tipped it. It fell with a crash, pinning a large brush-tailed possum to the ground.

   • 2005, Hugh Tyndale-Biscoe, Life of Marsupials, page 229:

     There are 22 species in the family, the commonest being the brushtail possum, Trichosurus vulpecula (Fig. 7.5d, Plates 12 and 13), in Australia and the northern common cuscus, Phalanger orientalis, in New Guinea.

• brushtail