- January 25th, 2007, 10:31 am
#55937
http://sports.espn.go.com/outdoors/gene ... id=2741164
Wallaby on loose in Pennsylvania
Associated Press — Jan. 24, 2007
FLEETWOOD, Pa.— Berks County Humane Society employees are trying to get the jump on a wallaby.
Residents have reported seeing the creature hopping around town. It's unclear how one ended up about 50 miles northwest of Philadelphia.
Wallabies, which look very similar to kangaroos, are native to Australia and Papua New Guinea.
The agency received its first report of a wallaby sighting on Monday from a man who had seen the animal in his backyard over the weekend, humane society officer Dylan Heckart said.
Officials have since set traps baited with food in areas where the creature has been seen, said Heckart.
Members of the public are being advised to keep their distance if they spot the animal.
``They're violent when confined or restrained,'' Heckart said Tuesday, noting wallabies' powerful kicking legs. ``They can definitely injure a human being badly.''
The Lehigh Valley Zoo, about 20 miles away in Schnecksville, said it was not missing a wallaby.