Wallabies came to New Zealand in 1912; they now threaten to spread across a third of the country

Authorities are asking people to report sightings and signs of the animals. (Photo: WWF Australia) Wallabies introduced to New Zealand more than a century ago have spread across more than 200,000 hectares in the country’s North Island. Authorities are now working to control their population because the animals can damage native forests, compete with farm animals for pasture and harm young trees in plantations.A wallaby is a small or middle-sized macropod native to Australia and New Guinea The wallabies in the Bay of Plenty region were brought from Australia. According to Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand’s North Island, Dama and parma wallabies were introduced to Kawau Island by former Prime Minister of New Zealand Sir George Grey around 1870, along with animals including monkeys, zebra and gnu. In 1912, dama wallabies from Kawau Island were released near Lake Okareka in the Bay of Plenty.Since then, the animals have established themselves across a large area. The Bay of Plenty Regional Council says they are now found across more than 200,000 hectares. Their current range stretches from Rotorua east to Kawerau, and south beyond Maunga Kakaramea, also known as Rainbow Mountain, to...