Aussie wildlife found thriving 15,000km from home: ‘I can’t believe it’
Using newspaper and eye-witness reports, the wildlife lover tracked down a mob of wallabies living in the Midlands.
Reports of a mob of mysterious wallabies living in a remote location 15,000km from Australia have been investigated by a wildlife adventurer.
For over a year, British man “Cookie” worked to pinpoint the exact location of the marsupials which were believed to be thriving somewhere in the Midlands. After gathering newspaper reports and eyewitness testimony of sightings, he received a message from a man who claimed to have seen one.
But after he travelled to the secret location where they were said to be living, the tip-off turned out to be “dodgy”. It was at this low point that Cookie’s fortunes suddenly changed.
“I just asked someone in a car park and he was like: My neighbour thought he saw a kangaroo a couple of weeks ago. I was like: Oh my God this coincidence is mad,” Cookie told Yahoo News Australia.
Joyous moment Cookie reacts to wallaby find
After following the general direction of the sighting, Cookie was elated when he finally tracked down the colony. He chronicled the captivating moment on camera and uploaded it to TikTok, attracting over 1.5 million views.
Cookie’s utter delight is clear throughout the minute-long clip and it’s a delight to watch. Scanning the snow-covered ground, he points ahead and smiles. “I’ve got them. They’re all there,” he says.
After following a hopping wallaby with his camera, he turns the lens on himself and says “Oh my God, this is amazing. This is why I do what I do. I absolutely love this. I can’t believe it, there are wild wallabies in England.”
Other Aussie wildlife mobs in the UK
It’s not the first time Cookie has hunted for wild wallabies in England. In 2022, he travelled to Warwickshire in search of a rare white wallaby that had been reportedly spotted by a farmer.
There are several known colonies of wallabies across England and Scotland, with over 560 known to be thriving on the Isle of Man since they escaped from a wildlife park in the 1960s.
Ferry driver surprised by koala stowaway: 'What are you doing here?'
Woman's 'awful' find inside shrunken Tooheys Extra Dry wrapper
But wallabies are not the only Aussie animals known to be flourishing in Britain — a pair of kookaburras were photographed in the Scottish town of Dumfriesshire in May.
Hunt for mysterious New Zealand moose
Having filmed the wild Midlands wallabies, Cookie has now set his sights on new adventures. When he spoke to Yahoo he was in Auckland, New Zealand searching for the country’s Fiordland moose, a creature not photographed since 1952.
“None have been officially seen since, but there is some evidence of them. So I’m out her for a bit of an adventure,” he said.
Love Australia's weird and wonderful environment? Get our new weekly newsletter showcasing the week’s best stories.
