Wombats are the largest burrowing mammal. They can be found across Tasmania, eastern New South Wales and eastern Victoria. The photos of these wombats were taken in the wild at Cradle Mountain and on Maria Island in Tasmania.
They have become an iconic Australian native animal because of their cuddly appearance and cute waddle. Their short legs, large paws and long, strong claws allows them the dig burrows that can be as long as 20 metres. As they are marsupials, females have a pouch that is backwards so dirt doesn’t get into it while the female is digging. Wombats are also the closest relative to the koala, another iconic Australian animal.
They are mostly nocturnal. Although we did see a number of wombats active during the day in Tasmania as they will graze during the day in colder weather.
Cradle Mountain is a great place for wombat spotting. If you like hiking take the day and follow my
Fun Fact: Did you know that a wombat’s poop is cubed? If you want to know more, Australian Geographic has a great article on why.
Wombats are wild animals but because they are used to people at Cradle Mountain, they would come close. This photos shows how close this little guy came to us while wandering the marsh area.
It is important to remember not to try to touch or interfere with any wild animal. And yes that even means whey that are this cute.
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Angela
I love this post and photos as I went to Cradle Mountain and didnt see one. I even started wondering whether they even existed but your photos are proof they do!
Lisa
AngelaThey are definitely there Angela. We saw a few of them and they were more than happy to get their photos taken.