She is a wild animal, but as the largest and most recognizable of the wallabies that visit my friend's building site, he named her. Hoppy visits late in the afternoon most days to feed on the hillside. Sometimes she is there early in the morning too.
We know she's a female and she has had at least three joeys, possibly some of the others that resemble her and also feed here. Of the two wallaby types we typically see, she is the more "kangarooish" - is that a word? As I'm new to Tasmania and hadn't seen a kangaroo, that's what I thought she was until I identified her as a Bennett's Wallaby, apparently the Tasmanian version of the Red-necked Wallaby.
You can see the fur of her neck is a little reddish.
She figured out that we won't prey on her but she still keeps her distance and watches us with a vacant expression. Our speculations on wallaby intelligence were confirmed the day we put up a fence and heard wallabies bouncing off it that night! With those long back legs, they can really move fast, then BAM! But don't be concerned -- none were injured and we left them a route to their hillside.
Those long back legs are the reason kangaroos and wallabies, both marsupials, are members of the macropod family. It literally means big foot. In comparison, the front legs are short and stubby, leading to some awkward poses as they graze on the steep hill.
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Images
Photos taken with my Canon SX620 HS near Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
