Playing Possum - I’m Afraid Not!

Apologies to the squeamish - not the most edifying photo but bear in mind I had to actually manhandle this thing and bury it - you just get to see it’s grave! So J R and the kids came round to visit and R and L were out in the garden and came rushing in with Z to enlist my help with something in the pond - and here’s the mysterious part. This possum, which is all of one and half feet long is floating head down in our pond being attacked but swarms of green flies we have never seen before in our garden. The question we couldn’t answer was - how did this Possum, without a scratch on it except a half severed tail end up drowning in our little pond?? The only thing we can think of is the cat chased it and it inadvertently charged into the pond and couldn’t get out - anyway as chief possum funeral director and priest, I had to do the honors - blister on the hand from digging the root ridden garden and savaged by mosquitos from the pond. RIP!