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Wallabies thriving on remote i...

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Wallabies thriving on remote island off Irish coast

Jonathan Duane
Jonathan Duane

06:11 18 May 2018


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Lambay Island is home to Ireland's only mob of wild wallabies.

The private island, which is 4 kilometres off the coast of north Dublin, also supports one of the largest seabird colonies in Ireland, Atlantic Great grey seals and fallow deer.

The wallabies are a long way from their native home of Australia, over 14,000km to be exact.

So, how did the marsupials end up living on Lambay?

The Baring family, the owners of the island, introduced a number of exotic animals to Lambay in the 1950s but few survived apart from the red-necked wallaby.

In the 1980s, the Barings received seven wallabies from Dublin Zoo, where the population had grown.

They now roam free and are thriving. It's believed there's approximately 100 of them!

Cover image via Mark Broderick on YouTube


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Animals Australia Dublin Dublin Zoo Lambay Island Quirky Wallaby