High in the fork of the balding cypress tree, in a record heat wave on January 30th at 3.00pm Melbourne daylight saving time, the female possum was invisible to the people below sheltering from the sun in its sparse shade.

See also: "Victorian Government shows no mercy for fauna and flora in Melbourne's heatwave" of 30 Jan 09.

Community members last week stopped workers installing possum exclusion bands on trees in Catani Gardens Melbourne by occupying the work-site.

On Friday last, around lunchtime, a friend of Protectors of Public Lands Victoria Inc (PPL VIC) observed workers of CityWide (a contractor hired by Port Phillip Council) high up on a cherry picker in St Kilda's Catani Gardens. They appeared to be taking out a sleeping possum from a large "possum box" (read trap) installed 20 metres up in one of the giant cypress trees and were forcing it into a large white bag, obviously for disposal. This represents a new development in the saga of the Council's bid to exterminate the colony of tame possums, which have lived in the Gardens for 80 years, delighting residents, tourists, plus generations of Melburnians.