striped possum
A small marsupial native to New Guinea and northern Australia, known for its black-and-white stripes. In Japanese, the name literally means 'pouch striped squirrel', reflecting its appearance and marsupial nature.
The striped possum lives in Australia and New Guinea.
I saw a striped possum for the first time at the zoo.
Katakana spelling is standard for this animal name.
Kanji spelling is rare and mainly encountered in older or specialized texts; the word is usually written in kana.
Compound of 袋 (fukuro, 'pouch') + 縞 (shima, 'stripe') + 栗鼠 (risu, 'squirrel'), referring to the animal's striped pattern and marsupial pouch. The exact origin of the Japanese name is uncertain, but it is a descriptive coinage.