I live in a medium sized rural city. Lots of trees.
Last night I was watching two possums roam my backyard (they kept tripping the security light). We also have a lot of raccoons around, too.
Where do the raccoons and possums go in the daytime? And where to squirrels go at night?
[sup]Under my house[/sup]
They go to school, so that they can learn to read and write. Then when the revolution comes…
To their nests.
I’ve never hunted 'coons or 'possums, but I’ve learned to identify squirrel nests. They look like a bunch of leaves stuck in the crook of a tree, and are easier to spot during hunting season (usually the winter).
I don’t know about racoons, but opossums are burrowers, and sleep in underground holes. I’ve had a few living under my backyard shed.
Opossums aren’t burrowers, strictly speaking, though they will den in burrows ( generally abandoned by some other animal ). They may have done a little bit of enlarging under your shed, but it was probably for the most part a pre-existing cavity. Opossums actually will den just about anywhere - under your house, in your attic, in tree cavities ( they have a prehensile tail and are both arboreal and terrestrial in habit ), hollow logs on the ground, abandoned burrows, even just under piles of brush or rocks. Their adaptability is one of the reasons for their success.
Raccoons are pretty similar actually, but with a slightly stronger preference for arboreal dens - your attic or tree cavities. They will resort to burrows and such occasionally, though. Another adaptable critter at home in both the trees and on the ground.
Squirrels, as mentioned, build nests in trees which look like ( from the bottom ) a clump of dead leaves and twigs. They will also build them in your attic, just like the other two ;). But it will almost always be elevated.
So from most general denning behavior to most specific it goes:
opossum > raccoon > squirrel
Raccoons here in Houston seem to be partial to storm sewers. I don’t know about opossums. I had one that went under my deck a bunch of times, but it never made a den there.
In the daytime, Possums work, so they can save up enough money for the next Dame Edna Everidge show.