Wallaby Joey Gets a Helping Hand at Taronga Zoo

A Swamp Wallaby who was rejected by her mother is being cared for by zoo keepers at Australia’s Taronga Zoo.

Photo Credit: Taronga Zoo

The six-month-old female joey was found separated from her mother in the zoo’s Wallaby exhibit. Keepers’ attempts to reunite the joey, named Mirrawa, with her mother were unsuccessful, so they took on the job of caring for the joey.

Mirrawa is currently being fed milk developed specifically for Wallabies. She’s just beginning to chew on soft new growth leaves of a few native plants, such as bottlebrush.

Keepers will care for Mirrawa until she is about eight months old. At that time, she’ll be reintroduced to the exhibit, where she will live among the Wallaby group.

Swamp Wallabies are common in the forests and scrublands of easternmost Australia. They emerge at night to feed on a wide variety of plants.

See more photos of Mirrawa below.