If you’ve noticed small holes appearing in your lawn or garden beds, you might wonder whether the opossums visiting your property are responsible. Understanding which animals are digging up your yard helps you address the problem effectively and protect your landscaping investment.
This guide explains opossum digging behavior, how to identify the holes they make, what attracts them to your property, and practical steps to minimize damage without harming these beneficial wildlife visitors.
Do Possums Actually Dig Holes in Your Yard?
Possums do dig shallow holes, but they are not prolific diggers compared to other wildlife. They create small, scattered depressions in lawns and garden beds while foraging for grubs, insects, and earthworms. These holes are typically one to three inches deep and two to four inches wide, appearing as random divots rather than organized tunnel systems or burrow entrances.
How Opossum Digging Differs from Other Animals
Identifying which animal is responsible for yard damage requires understanding the distinct patterns different species leave behind. Opossums create a specific type of disturbance that sets them apart from more destructive diggers.
Opossum Holes vs. Armadillo Damage
Armadillos are relentless diggers that create cone-shaped holes three to five inches deep and can destroy large sections of lawn in a single night. Their holes cluster together in concentrated areas where they’ve detected insect colonies underground.
Opossum damage appears more superficial and random, with scattered shallow scrapes across a wider area. If your lawn looks like it’s been attacked by a small rototiller, you’re likely dealing with armadillos, not opossums.
Opossum Holes vs. Skunk Damage
Skunks dig precise, cone-shaped holes about one to three inches across to reach specific grubs or insects. These holes often appear in neat rows following the path of beetle larvae just below the turf surface.
While similar in depth to opossum digging, skunk holes are more uniform in size and shape. Opossums tend to scrape and root more haphazardly as they search for food.
Opossum Holes vs. Raccoon Digging
Raccoons roll back sections of sod like carpet when searching for grubs, leaving behind torn turf that can be pressed back into place. They also dig deeper holes near water sources and may overturn potted plants or garden ornaments.
Opossums lack the strength and dexterity to roll back sod and rarely disturb larger objects in your yard. Their foraging leaves the turf intact, though the shallow holes can still damage grass roots.
Why Possums Dig in Lawns and Gardens
Opossums are opportunistic omnivores that forage for whatever food is most readily available. Understanding their diet explains why they occasionally disturb your landscaping.
Searching for Insects and Grubs
The primary reason opossums dig is to reach insect larvae, earthworms, and beetles living in the top few inches of soil. Lawns with grub infestations become particularly attractive to these nocturnal foragers.
Well-watered, fertilized grass often supports larger populations of soil insects, which paradoxically makes healthy lawns more vulnerable to foraging damage. You may notice increased digging after rain when earthworms are closer to the surface.
Uncovering Fallen Fruit and Seeds
Opossums will scratch through mulch and leaf litter to find fallen fruit, nuts, seeds, and berries. Garden beds under fruit trees or near berry bushes may show signs of shallow digging and disturbed mulch layers.
This behavior intensifies in late summer and fall when natural food sources are most abundant. The disturbance is usually limited to surface scratching rather than true excavation.
Accessing Compost and Food Waste
Opossums are drawn to compost bins, especially those containing fruit scraps, vegetable peelings, or other kitchen waste. They may dig around the base of bins or scatter compost material while foraging.
Unsecured garbage cans and pet food dishes left outside also attract opossums, though these food sources don’t require digging. Once opossums establish a regular feeding pattern in your yard, incidental lawn damage may increase.
Signs That Possums Are Visiting Your Property
Small holes alone don’t confirm opossum activity. Look for these additional indicators to identify your nighttime visitors accurately.
- Scattered droppings that are one to two inches long, dark, and tubular with pointed ends, often containing insect parts or seeds
- Tracks showing five toes on both front and back feet, with the hind foot displaying an opposable thumb-like toe pointing sideways
- Disturbed mulch, leaf litter, or compost with a scattered rather than piled appearance
- Overturned or damaged container plants, though this is more common with raccoons
- Nighttime sightings of slow-moving, gray animals about cat-sized with pointed snouts and hairless tails
Do Possums Create Burrows or Dens?
Opossums do not dig their own burrows or permanent dens. They are nomadic animals that use existing structures for temporary shelter, moving between several different resting spots within their territory.
Common opossum sheltering sites include spaces under decks, sheds, or porches, hollow trees, brush piles, abandoned burrows dug by other animals, and dense vegetation. If you discover a burrow entrance with a diameter of four inches or larger, it was created by another animal such as a groundhog, skunk, or armadillo, though an opossum may opportunistically use it.
The Benefits of Possums in Your Yard
Before taking aggressive action against opossums, consider the valuable pest control services they provide. These misunderstood animals offer several benefits to home landscapes.
Opossums consume thousands of ticks each season, with studies suggesting a single opossum may eat over 5,000 ticks during active months. They also eat cockroaches, beetles, snails, slugs, mice, rats, and even venomous snakes without suffering ill effects from the venom.
Unlike raccoons or skunks, opossums rarely carry rabies due to their lower body temperature. They are generally non-aggressive and will freeze, hiss, or “play dead” rather than attack when threatened.
How to Minimize Possum Damage to Your Landscape
You can reduce opossum digging without resorting to trapping or removal by making your property less attractive for foraging. Most solutions focus on eliminating food sources and access points.
Address Grub and Insect Problems
Treating your lawn for grubs removes the primary food source that attracts digging animals. Apply beneficial nematodes or milky spore disease according to package directions, typically in late summer or early fall when grubs are most vulnerable.
Reducing insect populations makes your yard less appealing to opossums and other foragers. Healthy turf with proper mowing height and adequate drainage naturally resists grub damage better than stressed lawns.
Secure Food Sources
Store garbage in bins with locking lids and bring pet food dishes inside after dark. Move birdfeeders away from the house and clean up fallen seed regularly, as this attracts rodents that in turn attract opossums.
If you compost, use a bin with secure latches or bury food scraps under a thick layer of brown material. Harvest fruit and vegetables promptly and remove fallen fruit from under trees before it attracts wildlife.
Remove Shelter Opportunities
Close off access to spaces under decks, sheds, porches, and crawl spaces using quarter-inch hardware cloth buried six inches into the ground and extending upward to seal openings. Wait until you’re certain no animals are inside before sealing, or install a one-way exit door temporarily.
Clear brush piles, stack firewood at least 18 inches off the ground, and trim vegetation that creates dense hiding spots near your foundation. Making your property less hospitable for daytime resting reduces the likelihood of regular opossum visits.
Install Motion-Activated Deterrents
Motion-activated sprinklers startle opossums without causing harm and can protect specific areas like garden beds or compost bins. Position sensors to cover the approach paths animals use, typically along fences or building foundations.
Motion-activated lights may also discourage nighttime foraging, though opossums can become accustomed to them over time. Combine lighting with other deterrents for better results.
Protect Specific Garden Areas
Cover newly seeded or sodded areas with bird netting secured at the edges until grass establishes. For vegetable gardens, install a fence at least four feet high with the bottom buried several inches or bent outward to prevent animals from squeezing underneath.
Apply a thick layer of mulch around ornamental plants to make digging less rewarding, though this won’t stop determined animals. Chicken wire laid flat over bulb beds and secured with landscape staples prevents digging while allowing plants to grow through.
When to Consider Professional Wildlife Control
Most opossum activity requires only minor deterrent efforts, but some situations call for professional help. Contact a licensed wildlife control operator if opossums are denning inside your home’s walls or attic, if you have recurring problems despite implementing multiple deterrents, or if animals appear sick or behave abnormally during daylight hours.
Professionals can humanely trap and relocate problem animals where legal and appropriate, though many jurisdictions restrict wildlife relocation due to disease transmission concerns and territorial stress on relocated animals. Exclusion and habitat modification remain the most effective long-term solutions in most cases.
Repairing Lawn Damage from Possum Digging
Small holes left by foraging opossums usually repair themselves with basic lawn care. For shallow depressions, simply press the disturbed soil back into place with your foot and water the area to help grass roots reestablish contact with the soil.
For slightly larger holes, fill with a soil and compost mixture, tamp gently, and overseed with grass seed matching your existing turf. Keep repaired areas moist until new grass germinates and establishes, typically two to three weeks depending on grass type and weather conditions.
Living with Backyard Wildlife
Opossums are temporary visitors in most yards, moving through their territory on regular routes rather than staying in one location permanently. The shallow holes they create while foraging rarely cause significant landscape damage compared to the pest control benefits they provide.
Take simple steps to protect vulnerable areas and remove attractants, but recognize that completely wildlife-proof landscapes are neither realistic nor desirable. A few superficial divots represent a reasonable trade-off for natural tick and rodent control in your outdoor spaces.
We hope this guide helps you identify and manage opossum activity around your home with practical, humane solutions that protect both your landscape and beneficial wildlife.