2 weeks Ago By Bianca Hall
A miracle wombat joey has been rescued three weeks after her still-lactating mother was deliberately mowed down and killed in a popular South Gippsland tourist town. Rescuers named the joey Hope in recognition of her unlikely survival after a mass slaughter of wombats in Venus Bay last month, when 10 wombats were deliberately struck by drivers of three 4WD vehicles. Wombat joey Hope survived more than three weeks without her mother, who was killed by unknown offenders.
Police are yet to charge anyone over the attacks, which have galvanised the close-knit community, but have appealed for anyone with information to come forward. They confirmed the acts were being treated as deliberate. The attacks took place between 10pm and 11pm on February 18 .
The next morning Venus Bay local Mark Radley inspected the bodies of wombats scattered on roads within the town, checking for joeys and marking them. Several of the wombats had been dragged and placed into artificial positions, and several carried vehicle tyre marks. Hope is recovering at Healesville Sanctuary.
Among the animals Radley inspected was a rare blonde adult female with an enlarged pouch – still lactating in death – with no joey nearby. “At that point I was worried these creeps had taken the joey,” he said. Despite his fears, Radley put bowls of water out nightly in case the joey returned.
Wildlife shelter operator Kylie Laing also checked the blonde wombat on February 18, before going on a “mission” to find the joey. She set up cameras to try to spot the juvenile wombat, and followed fresh scat along wombat trails..
