US influencer sparks backlash after taking wild baby wombat from its mother for a photo: Deport her
An American hunting influencer has sparked intense backlash after posting footage of herself capturing a wild baby wombat on the side of the road, removing it from its distressed mother for a photo opportunity.It was posted by Sam Jones who has been previously referred to as Samantha Strable in a hunting publication and goes by the username @samstrays_somewhere on Instagram.She claims to be a “wildlife biologist and environmental scientist,” and shared the disturbing video in a Reel that she’s since deleted amid the controversy.The footage shows Jones catching the wombat on the side of the road during the night, while an Australian man films and hysterically laughs.As she runs across the road holding the terrified animal, whose feet are dangling in the air, the man is heard saying, “Look at the mother, it’s chasing after her!”The influencer then holds up the baby wombat, who is wriggling and clearly in distress, to the camera and smiles for a photo, captioning the clip that it was her “dream” to hold a baby wombat.As the mother appears next to her, she says, “Okay, mama is right there, and she is pissed, let’s let him go”.The filmer replies, “Nah, he’s all right,” as she places it back on the ground.Jones added in the caption that “the baby and mum were safely united”.At the time of writing, it has not been confirmed where or when the incident occurred.All Australian animals are protected under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.WIRES has confirmed that this act is illegal.Penalties for animal cruelty offenses vary by state, with fines reaching as high as $148237 for individuals and $157,298 for corporations, along with potential imprisonment of up to seven years.WIRES Wildlife Vet Dr Tania Bishop told news.com.au that the wombat in the video is an at-foot joey, likely around eight months old, and completely dependent on its mother.“It would be with the mum at all times, relying on her for protection,�...