‘Streetwise’ wallaby on the run across UK countryside for three years – but vanishes ‘like a ghost’ to escape capture

A WALLABY that “vanishes like a ghost” when spotted has spent the last three years on the loose across the UK countryside. Local zookeeper Danny Reynolds said the wallaby – which has adjusted to its wild life in the rolling hills of Devon – is infamously hard to capture. A wallaby has spent the last three years on the loose in Devon Credit: SWNS The marsupial has been famously hard to capture Credit: SWNS “It’s far too streetwise now and has obviously been chased a number of times before,” he said. “We tried when it was nearer our premises to catch it, putting teams out with net sweeps and even went out with dart guns, but as soon as it sees you or it hears any noise, it’s gone. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! “It doesn’t belong in an enclosed environment now, it’s enjoying itself out there.” The vagrant marsupial – native to Australia – is not the first to have ended up thousands of miles from its home turf. Vicky Wilkins spotted the mammal on her way home from an appointment Credit: SWNS The wallaby was looking healthy despite fending for itself for three years Credit: SWNS Populations have also been spotted in Hertfordshire and Gateshead by startled locals, with this sighting in Devon being the latest. Vicky, 57, was on her way back from an appointment on June 21 in Barnstaple when she spotted the wallaby – but said it seemed totally unfazed by the encounter. “I was so close to it and I moved every time it moved, but when I stopped it would just look at me, and I didn’t think it was afraid or anything,” said the interior designer. She added: “It was mad, absolutely mad.” Most read in The Sun “As I turned the corner, I thought, ‘oh my gosh, what is that?'” At first, she suspected it was a rabbit before suddenly realising it was a wallaby. “I thought ‘no one is going to believe that I’ve seen a wallaby trotting down the road in the middle of North Devon‘,” she said. “I then opened the door and got out of the car but there was no way I was going to be able to catch it. “After a while, he just trotted off and jumped into the hedge.” She said that it appeared very well fed given how long it had been out in the wild. Zookeeper Danny believes the wallaby has likely adjusted to its wild life out the hills. He said: “The winters have warmed up so much now and become a lot wetter and less cold. “This particular individual seems to like staying in dense undergrowth and forest, so it’s making a good living eating bramble and all the bits that survive through the winter.” He added that while it may be alone in the countryside, it is not necessarily “sad or in need of company”. “It has come in to our proximity here at the zoo before, but it’s quite happy to be out there, and it doesn’t particularly spend any time with us, so if it was looking for companionship, it would stay nearer to our premises,” he said. Comment now