theorized that Virginia opossums in a laboratory setting could eat thousands of ticks per week by grooming. However, a 2021 study of the stomach contents of wild Virginia opossums in Illinois did not find any ticks in their diet. No scientific paper as of 2023 has reported ticks in the stomach contents of Virginia opossums.

Small animals include young rabbits, meadow voles, mice, rats, birds, snakes, lizards, frogs, fish, crayfish, gastropods, and earthworms. The Virginia opossum has been found