A missing one-metre tall wallaby may possibly survive the summer in the Kamloops region, a Thompson Rivers University biologist suggests.

But, there is still a reason to be concerned about the survival of the wallaby that has evaded capture for nearly a week, says Dr. Karl Larsen, Associate Professor of Natural Resource Sciences, Wildlife Ecology and Management at TRU.

The wallaby, an animal resembling a small kangaroo, escaped from a home in the Sa-hali area where it is believed to have been kept as a pet.

“Although I haven’t heard exactly what species the Kamloops’ wallaby is, there may be suitable vegetation in summer for it eat in, or even outside of the city,” Larsen said. “And as for coyotes, a wallaby should have some instinctive awareness of predators, the species must naturally deal with predators in Australia, like dingos.”

The eminent concern for its survival, he says, has more to do with traffic and changing seasons. Once fall arrives, vegetation will become scarce and of course the weather will cool, something a marsupial native to Down Under won’t be conditioned to.

File photo

“We have to consider both ethics and safety when keeping exotic animals as pets,” Larsen added, cautioning against a knee-jerk reaction banning all exotic animals. “Gold fish and budgies are exotic animals, but they likely are captive-reared. We don’t know if this wallaby was raised in captivity and/or imported into the country.

“Garter snakes, for example, are native species found around Kamloops. I would be more concerned with someone capturing one of them and holding it in captivity, where it would probably die, versus someone buying an exotic but harmless species that is a product of captive rearing. It’s a complicated issue.

Larsen suggests that jurisdictions create ‘white lists’ of species that are permitted to be kept as pets, rather than ‘black lists’ that attempt to list those animals that are banned. “Black lists have a hard time being exhaustive, so it is better to put the onus on would-be pet suppliers and owners to get their desired species added to the white list.”

• Contact: Dr. Karl Larsen, Associate Professor
  Natural Resource Sciences, Wildlife Ecology & Management
  (p) 250.828.5456