A cute possum has turned savage in an attack that left one man astonished and in fits of laughter.

When YouTube user Grizzly Maye started to film the possum, he can be heard talking to it and asking 'hey, what are you doing?'.

The possum caught the man off-guard when it jumped on him while he was filming

FUN FACTS ABOUT POSSUMS Interestingly, a female possum is called a 'Jill' and a male possum a 'Jack' The young are called 'Joeys' and a group of possums is called a 'passel' There are 23 known possum species in Australia but there are two most likely to be seen in the city and around people 1. The Common Brushtail Possum Native to Australia, its name literally translates from 'furry tailed little fox' in Greek 2. The Common Ringtail Possum Also an Australian marsupial, its name literally translates to 'false hand pilgrim' from Greek

The size of a small cat, it is mainly grey with white fur on the tip of its tail Advertisement

In the footage, which has already been viewed almost 500 times since it was uploaded on Sunday, the possum can be seen walking up to the camera and sniffing inquisitively.

But in one swift move, the possum launches itself onto the man behind the camera, leaving him in utter shock and unable to control his amusement.

'It jumped!' he said.

'He wanted my phone.'

When the possum retreats, neither the possum nor the man are harmed, but it's clear the critter is not a fan of the man or his camera, and runs off.

But the man behind the camera is not deterred by the encounter, continuing to film the possum as it backs away.

Clearly proud of the footage he's managed to capture, the user laughs and says the experience was 'the best thing I've done all day'.