Worrying reports of Wallabies spotted in unusual places in New Zealand: why it's bad

Residents of the South Island of New Zealand have received reports that a wallaby, a subspecies of kangaroo, was spotted at a distance of 160 km from the control zone in the south of Canterbury. Zoologists fear that the animals could harm nature and private plots in the Port Hills.

According to News Hub, experts have a theory as to how the wallabies could have ended up so far from their families. Canterbury Wallabies program manager Brent Glentworth said that these pests were swimming across the Waitaki River.

It is estimated that the wallaby population can spread by 2 km every year, causing damage to farms and local flora. In the South Island, they have now occupied 1.3 million hectares outside the 900,000-hectare containment zone.

Small kangaroos have been seen in Marlborough, Wellington and Bulklut. Recently, there have been reports of wallabies spotted in Christchurch, in the Port Hills, but experts have not yet been able to catch them.

It has taken more than 12 days to find the pest. During this time, the hunters made sure that the animals could not have gotten to the area on their own. Most likely, they were brought by car.

According to the Canterbury Environment organization, the wallaby was probably brought in by amateur hunters who shot a mother with a cub in her bag.

The country allows hunting these animals to regulate their numbers. An excessive population of wallabies will harm both nature and people.

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