There’s an opossum that’s wild in the Homer region.
Many people, like those from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game are against it. This is because the opossum is an invading species.
On contrary it’s weird enough for Homerites to gather around. They’ve dubbed it “Grubby.” A hashtag called #FreeGrubby is making appearances on various social networks.
Megan Pacer with the Anchorage Daily News wrote about the Grubby story in the past. Also, Pacer claims that the best way anyone is able to discern, it’s not as if Grubby the Opossum would have wanted to go to Alaska.
Listen:
The transcript below has been lightly edited to improve clarity.
Megan Pacer: This Opossum was apparently transported to Alaska via a shipping container that was shipped from Washington State. We don’t know where exactly it was located in Washington State, but it ended up on the rear of a shipping container Spenard Builders Supply in Homer had placed an order for. The container was empty, but it had some supplies inside. As they began to unload the contents, they saw the container in the rear of the container. They then considered, “OK, what do we do?” And they called the shelter and the whole thing fell apart from there. However, it’s true that the little gal or guy got there to Washington State.
Casey Grove: I’m not sure exactly what was the response but I’m pretty sure it was something like “Hey this isn’t right here.” Is that right?
Megan Pacer Megan Pacer: Pretty very much, yes. According to what I’ve heard from my conversation with the head of the shelter for animals in Homer and they were approached, SBS staff basically said, “What do we do in this situation? This isn’t what we normally do.” From there the staff at the shelter called for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game since they were unsure of what to do. Then Fish and Game advised, “Well you know, this isn’t great that it’s in this area. It’s an invading species. If you are able to trap it, we’ll handle it. We’ll take care of it.” The animal, according to an official at the shelter was initially trapped, but managed to escape and is on the run since. That’s the point at which the commotion began.
Casey Grove: Yes. What’s the issue with an opossum living located in Alaska? As you mentioned in your article that it’s not permitted to keep the animals as pets. But, as you can imagine that this is similar to one that randomly landed on this site. What’s the significance to this?
Megan Pacer Yes, I believe you could say it’s not a major issue on the planet. However, the thing that Fish and Game told me is that it’s an invasion species. With any species that is invasive there’s a significant significance to that. It is not a good idea for non-native plants or animals to interfere with the native fauna and flora in Alaska. One of the main issues Fish and Game shared with me was that possums might possibly be a target for local birds, or native birds in the Homer region. It could be a problem if the female was one which was carrying babies at the time I was informed that one of the things we don’t would want to do is create an opossum population because it can grow, and could really of cause chaos. A further issue was that opossums can spread disease to wildlife around them.
Casey Grove: Now, the issue concerns that Fish and Game wants to capture this animal in order in order to rid it of. Then there are individuals from Homer who, like the possum, who are supportive. Let me know about it.
Megan Pacer: Sure. To backtrack one step the truth is that it did show up in March at the close of March. It wasn’t a thing that was well-known in the local community until it disappeared. Then it was discovered wandering around the police station on Grubstake Ave. The police department, as part of a hilarious PSA that was published the following message on Facebook, “Hey, someone’s missing their possum. We have just seen it pass through.” That’s why it’s name is, Grubby, because it was located on Grubstake Avenue.
At that moment, the division truly began. The director of the shelter told me that the shelter had totally split the town. There were people who supported the rubby cause and others who said with the fact that yes it’s invasive and this is a problem. The issue was appeared through social media. Businesses were also involved. They advertised sales, “If you come into our restaurant and mention “free Grubby You will receive 20 percent discount.” The place was filled with vendors selling T-shirts. Flyers were also available. “Grubby for mayor,”” “Grubby for president,”” even.
It’s true the person I spoke to speculated that maybe all this could be due to cabin fever. Many are still suffering from winter’s ravages. They’re looking for something to do. The people were really excited about this small intruder. It’s true that people were completely divided on how to do about the situation. It’s important to be clear, Fish and Game is not currently in search of this animal. There’s no hunt for Grubby or anything similar. They mostly stated, “You know, it’s not ideal that it’s there. If it were locked up and handed to us, we’d take it on.” But it’s just not at the top of their priority list to search for it.
