online petition<\/a> supporting Ms Jones’s deportation has received 10,500 signatures so far.<\/p>\n“Given the level of scrutiny that will happen if she ever applies for a visa again, I’ll be surprised if she even bothers,” Burke said in a statement. <\/p>\n
Ms Jones’s “appalling” behaviour could have caused severe harm to the wombats, conservationists say.<\/p>\n
The Wombat Protection Society said it was shocked to see the “mishandling of a wombat joey in an apparent snatch for ‘social media likes'”.<\/p>\n
“[She] then placed the vulnerable baby back onto a country road – potentially putting it at risk of becoming roadkill,” it noted in its statement, adding that it remains unclear if the joey reunited with its mother. <\/p>\n
“I caught a baby wombat,” Ms Jones exclaimed in the video, while the joey could be heard hissing and struggling in her grip. <\/p>\n
Her caption in the now-deleted post read: “My dream of holding a wombat has been realised! Baby and mom slowly waddled back off together into the bush.”<\/p>\n
“The baby was carefully held for one minute in total and then released back to mom,” she wrote in the comments, responding to criticism.<\/p>\n
“They wandered back off into the bush together completely unharmed. I don’t ever capture wildlife that will be harmed by my doing so.” <\/p>\n
Following the backlash, Ms Jones, who has more than 92,000 followers on Instagram, made her account private. But several media outlets had already shared the video – as well as earlier posts, said to be taken in Australia, which show her holding an echidna and a “little shark”. <\/p>\n
Wombats, which are native to Australia, are a legally protected species across the country. Baby wombats share a strong bond with their mothers, and any separation can be distressing and harmful, conservationists say. <\/p>\n
“Wombats are not a photo prop or plaything,” said Suzanne Milthorpe, Head of Campaigns at World Animal Protection Australia, in a statement online. <\/p>\n
“It’s just unacceptable, and we’re glad she’s being called to account. Snatching a screaming baby wombat from their mother is not just appalling, it’s very possibly illegal under state or national laws,” Ms Milthrope said. <\/p>\n
Some experts believe Ms Jones broke the law because Australia prohibits people from harming or taking native wildlife. <\/p>\n
It is only allowed if the joey is in need of help because its mother has died, wildlife veterinarian Tania Bishop told ABC News.<\/p>\n
Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong also weighed in on the “dreadful” video. <\/p>\n
“I think everyone who would have seen that would have thought, leave the baby wombat alone. Leave it with its mum,” she told 7News.<\/p>\n
Additional reporting by Simon Atkinson<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n
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