Animal injured?

Wombat scandal: US influencer left Australia

A wombat in Australia (archive photo)

(Bild: AP/Dean Lewins)

In Australia, a US influencer snatched a baby wombat from its mother and filmed it. Following criticism of her actions, she has now fled the country. "There has never been a better day for baby wombats in Australia", commented Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke.

On Thursday, he had already stated that the influencer's visa should be reviewed. However, the ABC reported that the departure was voluntary. As reported, the US American had posted a video in which she picks up a wombat cub by the roadside and runs towards the camera, followed by the animal's mother. The sound of a man laughing can be heard.

"I caught a baby wombat," says the woman, holding up the small marsupial, which wriggles and hisses. The American woman, who according to the media is an avid hunter, put the animal back on the side of the road, but there was no sign of the mother. 

Watch the influencer's video here.

Animal rights activists warned that the wombat cub could have been injured while being picked up and carried. "The way she lifted the cub by the forearms could have caused injury to muscles, tendons, nerves, shoulders and upper arms," said vet Tania Bishop.

"Snatching a baby wombat from its mother and causing distress to the mother is simply an outrage," commented Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Wombats are marsupial mammals that only live in Australia. They have sharp claws which they use to dig burrows. The herbivores can grow up to 120 centimetres long and weigh up to 40 kilograms.

Usually only one cub per litter
Wombats almost always only raise one young, the offspring grow up in the pouch for six to eight months and then stay close to their mother for about a year. Life expectancy is at least five years in the wild and more than 20 years in captivity. The oldest female lived to be 34 years old.