I just spotted my first wombats in the wild on Cradle Mountain in Tasmania.
These stocky little marsupials sort of look like a cross between a baby brown bear, koala & pig. They have a pouch like other marsupials, but it’s backwards which prevents dirt from entering as they burrow.
At just over 3 ft long, they’re absolutely charming. But millions of years ago, herds of giant wombats as large as rhinoceros roamed southern #Australia. #wildlife #photography #SharedPlanet
I think we should start a campaign to resurrect thegiat wombat. Why should mammoths get all the research. It would be awesome to see a herd if majestic giant wombats thundering across the landscape.
Fun fact. #PBSKids will premiere a new series called Work it Out Wombats on February 6th. The show will emphasize computational thinking and problem solving. It’s an interesting choice to use these charming creatures to educate young children!
Today at the Television Critics Association Press Tour, PBS KIDS announced WORK IT OUT WOMBATS!, a new animated series for kids ages 3-6 from GBH Kids and Pipeline Studios.
Only thousands of years ago, they were called diprotodons and they co existed with aboriginals for a few thousand years.
A guy a while back estimated the aboriginals only ate the small ones but they ate them at a rate larger than their birth rate so they died off after 15k years or so. The buffalo of Australia.
I had one living in my backyard for a while. He was busily trying to dig a new burrow. Unfortunately, my fence was a bit, shall we say, approximate, and he'd chosen a spot that was patched with a sheet of corrugated iron. And about 5 metres from my bedroom window. Around 1 or 2am, he'd get stuck into some vigorous digging. I'd sit bolt upright to the sounds of 'BANG!!!!! Thump thump thump thump!', realise it was the wombat, fall straight back to sleep, 'BANG!!!!! Thump thump thump thump!' By the third repetition, I'd be lying there wide awake waiting for the next one. I was both sorry and hugely relieved when he moved on.
I had to look this up .. and they make cube-shaped feces. So I had to look that up, and now I'm not sure whether I'll be having my veggie meatballs for lunch
I'll never forget how absolutely confused I was seeing these the for the first time at night in Australia, having never even heard that they exist. Trying to make out what on earth I was looking at on the half-dark campground...
that wombat looks wonderfully healthy. Attached is a photo of Ash, as named by some of the volunteers for https://wombatrescue.com.au/. We only see Ash during the day when he’s suffering from manage. We’re fortunate to have some locals who are able to come out to treat him and put up flaps anytime we spot him. Haven’t seen him in quite a while, which is both sad and great.
elisa
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Simon Hobeck
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •It would be awesome to see a herd if majestic giant wombats thundering across the landscape.
Evey
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •ZZ Bottom
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Dr Luna Clara Muñoz
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •tasha
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Dr. C
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •https://www.pbs.org/about/about-pbs/blogs/news/pbs-kids-announces-new-series-work-it-out-wombats-debuting-winter-2023/
PBS KIDS Announces New Series, WORK IT OUT WOMBATS! Debuting Winter 2023
PBS Publicity (About PBS - Main)tyen
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •A guy a while back estimated the aboriginals only ate the small ones but they ate them at a rate larger than their birth rate so they died off after 15k years or so. The buffalo of Australia.
TweetingTechno
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Around 1 or 2am, he'd get stuck into some vigorous digging. I'd sit bolt upright to the sounds of 'BANG!!!!! Thump thump thump thump!', realise it was the wombat, fall straight back to sleep, 'BANG!!!!! Thump thump thump thump!' By the third repetition, I'd be lying there wide awake waiting for the next one.
I was both sorry and hugely relieved when he moved on.
smallerdemon 🌪️
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •SameGirlie
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •markus
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Tim Ward ⭐🇪🇺🔶 #FBPE
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •I don't have any decent photos of a wombat due to their habit of running towards the camera and getting to close to it before you've set up the shot.
Here's one that hadn't spotted me yet (yes, it's in a zoo):
Sophie
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Maureen
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •OldBrushNewPaper
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •famkeZ
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •greenPAl00ka 🏳🌈
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Xerxes
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •BaylessMarilyn
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Richard Rathe
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Somehow I find that thought encouraging!
anniegt
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •quangobaud
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Capybaras vs Wombats
Rodent vs Marsupial
To the ... um ... er ... To the DEF!
( was running out of appropriate sillyness at the end there 🤓)
Rebecca Caines
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Journeyman ☠️
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Nols
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Aaron
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •Mateo Perez Rothkegel
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •David Ho
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •MidgePhoto
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum • • •