Wallaby sightings prompt plea to public

Members of the public managed to get pictures of the animals as they roamed the countryside

A number of wallaby sightings in Nottinghamshire has prompted an appeal by wildlife experts.

Over the summer, multiple reports of the kangaroo-like marsupial were made in Southwell and Calverton.

Now Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust (NWT) has mapped out more of these incidents and concluded the 20-mile (32km) range is unlikely to be accounted for by escapes.

It has asked to public to keep calling in sightings to see if there are groups actually living in the county.

The sightings were separated by up to 20 miles - or 12,000 hops

In July, a wallaby was spotted on the loose by members of the public in and around Calverton.

The following month, more sightings were reported by staff and club members at Oakmere Golf Club, near Southwell.

Erin McDaid, from NWT, said: "As the story grew, reports and sightings started coming in from a much wider area.

"This suggested there were more out there than we had originally thought.

"The distance between these, stretching from Bilsthorpe to Bottesford, is quite a distance and it makes it unlikely those animals are escapes from the same location."

To have a better idea of how many wallabies might be out there, the trust has asked people to tell them if they spot one.

Mr McDaid said: "Because just about everyone carries a camera in their pocket, on their phone, we can hopefully avoid misidentifications.

"If you have a video of a wallaby, it is quite difficult to confuse it with anything else because of the way they move with a hopping motion."

The trust also said it was keen to hear of any other wildlife sightings which could be listed on its recording page.