Wombats in Gippsland
Australia is home to an abundance of cute native animals, but wombats are undeniably some of the cutest. Square, squat and hairy, they’re related to koalas and look a little like walking furry foot stools.
Like all marsupials, wombats have a pouch, but because they dig burrows, their pouch faces backwards so as not to get dirt on their young. They also have a reinforced backside, which they use to fend of potential attacks by running into their burrow and blocking the entrance with their butt. What’s not to love?
Wombats are nocturnal, as sadly so many Australian animals are, but active in the hours of sunset and early mornings. They can most readily found in Gippsland, a short (1.5 to 2 hours) drive from Melbourne, where they often treated as precious campsite pests — like little tanks, they like to barge straight through careful tent arrangements.
