Rare white wallaby spotted on the hop in Kenilworth field

A rare white wallaby has been spotted on the hop through Warwickshire farmland.

Nineteen-year-old farmer Jack Smith spotted the creature while out planting barley in a field near Kenilworth on Tuesday evening.

"I saw it in the hedge and thought it was a rabbit or a cat," he said. "But then it started hopping away."

White wallabies are so coloured due to a rare genetic mutation and are native to Bruny Island in Tasmania.

Mr Smith said he was left "in a bit of shock" after seeing the animal and had "no idea where it came from".

"I know someone nearby farms alpacas but not wallabies," he said.

"What's it doing in England?"

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Mr Smith caught footage of the wallaby on his phone and shared it on social media, leaving friends in disbelief.

"People thought I was in Australia," he said.

In 2013, a white wallaby named Colin escaped from his pen in Solihull, scaling a 6ft fence on an enclosure which he shared with seven other wallabies.

Owner Angela Cloke confirmed none of her family's mob was missing this time, meaning the marsupial's identity remains a mystery.

The RSPCA suspects the wallaby is either lost or has escaped from a private collection, however said the species was established in the wild in Britain "as a result of escaping from captivity".

"Our advice to people who spot a wallaby in the wild is to watch from afar and don't try to approach them," a spokesperson said.

Nearby Hatton Country Park said all its wallabies were accounted for.

Warwickshire District Council said its animal welfare officers had received reports of a wallaby sighted about two weeks ago about eight miles away in Rowington, "which could suggest than an animal is moving about".

Mr Smith said he intended to return to the field for work later and would be "keeping an eye out" for the rare animals.