California zoo welcomes first baby wallaby

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — A California zoo has welcomed its first baby wallaby.

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According to the Santa Barbara Independent and KSBY-TV, the Santa Barbara Zoo announced Tuesday that the joey, born to Bennett’s wallaby Kalina, has been spotted in its mother’s pouch.

“The joey is 5-6 months old, which is when they usually start exploring life outside of their mother’s pouch,” the zoo wrote in a Facebook post. “Our animal care staff and a few eagle-eyed guests have started seeing a little head or legs poking out over the last few days!”

The post included a video of Kalina enjoying some greens as the joey appears to move.

“As she eats and peers around at her surroundings, we can clearly see something moving around in her belly!” the zoo captioned the video. “While no body parts of the joey were captured in this video, it’s clear that her adorable little offspring is here and starting to get curious about its new home.”

Zoo official Julie Barnes said in a statement that the tiny marsupial isn’t quite ready to emerge completely, the Independent reported.

“It will still be a while before the joey is ready to come all the way out of the pouch and spend time exploring the habitat with Kalina, and it will continue to hop in and out of the pouch until it is about 1 year old,” the statement read.

Bennett’s wallabies are native to Tasmania and Australia’s eastern coast, according to KSBY.

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