Opossum caught at freight transport warehouse in Hilo

A live opossum has been captured at a freight transporting warehouse near Hilo Harbor.

At approximately 10:15 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 12, warehouse workers observed an opossum within their container staging area. The workers initially contacted the US Department of Agriculture, which subsequently notified the Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture, Biosecurity, Plant Quarantine Branch in Hilo.

PQB staff responded immediately and upon arrival to the site discovered freight workers had already contained the opossum, enabling PQB staff to retrieve it without incident. PQB staff checked the rest of the area and found no other opossums.

Per animal and human health protocol, the opossum was humanely euthanized and submitted for rabies testing. A tissue sample is being sent to the mainland for testing. Hawai‘i is the only state in the US and one of the few places in the world that is free of rabies.

Over the years, several opossums have been captured in Hawai‘i:

• May 2026 – an opossum was captured in a container near Daniel K. Inouye International Airport.
• November 2025 – an opossum was found at a car dealership on Maui.
• October 2025 – two opossums were captured by PQB inspectors at two separate locations at Honolulu Harbor.
• September 2025 – an opossum was captured by PQB inspectors at Hilo Harbor
• January 2025 – an opossum was caught at a big-box store in Kona
• December 2024 – an opossum was trapped by PQB inspectors at a big-box store in Iwilei on O‘ahu.
• August 2024 – an opossum was captured at a Kalihi freight company after workers saw it run into a shipping container.
• July 2024 – an opossum was captured on a window ledge of an office building in Downtown Honolulu.

Opossums are prohibited in Hawai‘i and are only allowed by permit for research and exhibition in a municipal zoo. Opossums are native to North America and are omnivorous, with diets that range from insects, bird eggs, and rodents, to fruits and vegetables. Although opossums are less likely to carry rabies than other mammals, they are carriers of parasites and other diseases.

Anyone spotting an illegal animal should immediately call the statewide toll-free PEST HOTLINE at 808-643-PEST (7378).