SCIENTIFIC NAME:  Wallabia rufogrisea frutica

The Bennett wallaby, also known as the brush wallaby, is among the fastest and most nocturnal of the Kangaroo family. It differs from other small members of the family in a number of characteristics including long, oval-shaped ears, rudimentary or no canine teeth, and relatively smaller upper front teeth (central incisors).

The wallaby’s natural habits are similar to the kangaroos. It has greatly enlarged hind legs, a strong, muscular tail, small forelegs, a relatively small head, and large ears. It usually moves in a hopping gait. The smaller brush wallabies may have an easier time escaping pursuers. Bennett wallabies have been seen feeding together but usually they are nonsocial. It will begin to feed in the late afternoon and may continue until the following morning.

The reproduction process of the Bennett wallaby is unique. The newborn, born blind and poorly developed, will attach to a maternal teat within a pouch and there further develop for 6-11 months. A wallaby is able to carry one embryo in an arrested stage of development, while at the same time another offspring is carried in the pouch and suckled. Young wallabies are usually weaned around one year of age, but it’s estimated that 75 percent of wallaby joeys will die before they reach that age.