Agile Wallaby
Information below is from Lynda Stakers book " Don't step backwards" ( with permission )
The intelligent Agile wallaby is a real opportunist, eking out an existence where most of it’s habitat has been cleared. They have adapted
to the
agriculture areas by living in the sugar cane fields, which unfortunately is a hazard for them at crushing time, as many are caught
in the cane fires.
Agiles have been found to be the most easily stressed of the macropods, in captivity. If one animal gets a fright, they all panic, and will run
head long
into fencing over and over again. This is why it is imperative to have chain mesh fencing, so that they do not break their backs or
neck. I have seen a young
female Agile actually pound into a stone wall, continuously, trying to get back into the yard! They like to hide in
tall guinea grass, and when a mum leaves a
baby, the baby stays put, hiding in the grass, blending in with it’s environment.
The male Agile is the largest in weight of the wallabies, with the Whiptail being largest in height. Males take up to four years to develop their
arm and
chest muscles, and can weigh up to 29 kilos at maturity, whereas the females remain small in comparison to the males, with a
mature weight of around 11-15 kilo.
Agiles have been known to live up to twelve years in captivity, but is is unlikely they would survive that
long in the wild, as they are most commonly hit by
vehicles, and are shot by farmers predominantly for dog’s meat.
As with most wallabies, they thump their feet heavily when hopping away from danger, and hold their arms out from their side. Like most
wallabies in
comparison to the kangaroos, males tend to bite, scratch, or throw their opponents off balance, rather than rely totally on
kicking.
Agiles are not social, although they feed in mobs, they prefer to spend their time on their own. Females are less tolerant of other wallabies
than the
males. I have seen a male Agile acting out a role of ‘big brother’ to a young joey, whilst the joey’s mother was being chased by other
males. Males are
surprisingly tolerant of joeys, only the females show aggression towards other joeys, and females. They like to eat
grasshoppers and other insects, and they’ll dig
fairly deep for the roots of some herbs or grasses.
Joeys have a bird-like squeak when calling, and mum’s communicate with a soft clucking.
The offspring of Agile wallabies are extremely wild, and even though their mums may be in constant human contact, they still come out
of the pouch
‘wild’.
Agiles adapt easily into the wild on release, even if they have been in captivity for a long time, their wild instincts never seem to go.
Agiles that have been in wildlife parks for most of their life, still know what ‘freedom’ means, and convert to their wild ways very quickly.
If Agiles are released from a person’s property, they may remain around the house area at night, but are easily frightened away when strangers
are
around.
The gestation period is around 30 days. Females mate shortly after giving birth, and the blastocyst remains dormant until the pouch is
unoccupied. If a
pouch joey is lost, the dormant blastocyst will replace the lost joey within a month.
Agiles frequent coastal areas between Rockhampton, North around the coast of Australia to Broome, and because of their abundance,
are probably the
most ‘taken-for-granted’ macropod. They are still classed as a pest in QLD, N.T., and W.A., and are eradicated either
through shooting or poisoning
campaigns.
Agiles are often found in the Mangrove swamps, and quite good swimmers.
Because they are easily frightened and tend to go into a panic, these macropods are commonly seen with capture myopathy, either from
being chased by
dogs, or simply from running crazily after being frightened. This trait makes it virtually impossible to rehabilitate wild injured
adult animals, as they
cannot endure the healing time required, in captivity, without stress. Most often these injured adult animals have
to be euthanased.
The Agile joey is a joy for wildlife cares, as they have plenty of character!
