Evaluación del estado actual de zarigüeyas (Didelphismarsupialis)en tres zonas del Valle de Aburrá.

Objective. Opossum populations (Didelphismarsupialis) were characterized in an ecotourism area in Santa Elena, district of the city of Medellín and in the periurban and urban areas of the city of Caldas, Antioquia; using phototraps. Materials and methods. 7 Moultrie Game Spy® cameras were placed to determine relative abundance index (RAI) and rotated every three weeks. Baits were used to make observation easier. Results. For the Santa Elena district the sampling effort was 360 days / trap, in which 22 photographs of the species were obtained. Didelphismarsupialis had a total RAI of 0.18; of which 0.06 represented its abundance in the native forest and the remaining value was part of the area with pine trees. For the peri urban zone of the city of Caldas the sampling effort was 679 days / trap. The species Didelphismarsupialis had a total RAI of 0.4; which represents an approximate number of 26 individuals at the Santa Inés practice center. In the urban area of the city of Caldas it was not possible to establish this pattern. Conclusion. The study indicates that despite the transformation of the peri urban area in the Aburrá Valley it is possible to find elements representative of its peri urban mammals, even in small private reserves. The Didelphidae family has adapted to highly modified ecosystems, even in areas with invasive species such as exotic monocultures of exotic species, livestock pastures and anthropic transformation given by the fragmentation of forests, however these marsupials are forced to migrate locally to changes in the microclimate of forest fragments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]