The wallaby found on the Coney Island boardwalk on Friday night has a new home in Middle Island. Greg Cergol reports.
After a puzzling discovery on a busy Brooklyn boardwalk, officials say a pouched marsupial is adjusting to its new home on Long Island.
The wayward wallaby was found on Friday after officers said a man was spotted walking the animal on the Riegelmann Boardwalk just after 5 p.m.
Owning a wild marsupial is illegal in New York City, so the officers seized the animal. The 22-year-old man who was seen with it was given a summons.
The wallaby has found a new home in Middle Island, where the sight of an animal native to Australia is anything but usual.
"The animal obviously hasn't been abused or neglected. It just was being kept somewhere it shouldn't be," Lori Ketcham, of the Star Foundation, said.
Ketcham has been caring for the baby wallaby, less than a year old, since it was recovered at the start of the weekend. She says the animal is well fed and socialized.
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Owning a wild marsupial is illegal in New York City, so the officers seized the animal. The 22-year-old man who was seen with it was given a summons. He was allegedly collecting cash for photos with the wallaby.
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The wallaby was taken to Animal Care and Control, and then transferred to a local animal rehabilitation facility. The animal is said to be doing well and in good condition, and is believed to have been well-cared for.
The wallaby considered a foster animal, so the man has 10 days to present a legal argument as to why he can still own it. If he cannot produce said argument, the wallaby could find a permanent home at Ketcham's 4-acre center.
The marsupials are similar to kangaroos, but significantly smaller, growing only to about 40 pounds. But like kangaroos, they have strong back legs and can travel quite quickly, up to nearly 30 miles per hour at full speed.
