A swamp wallaby, which survived a car accident, has been released into bushland on the Central Coast.
Nicknamed ‘Jirri,’ the marsupial was lucky to be alive after he was thrown from his mother’s pouch in the crash.
“Jirri was found with broken legs on the side of the road and his mother unfortunately died at the scene,” said Mark O’Neill.
Mark is one half of a husband and wife team from Corrective Services NSW.
He and Katrina Irving have spent the past 12 months caring for the wallaby.
“He’s come so far since then and it’s amazingly fortunate that a driver stopped to pick him up and take him to a vet, who was willing to set and splint his fractures before he came to us for his rehabilitation.”
“It was a bittersweet moment to see him go. You do become attached to the animals but it’s such a rewarding experience to see them bounce back.”
The couple has been rescuing abandoned animals for seven years, becoming qualified volunteer wildlife carers in 2017.
Together, they’ve saved wallabies, kangaroos, wombats, possums and birds.
