An American influencer has angered conservationists after she shared a video of herself taking a wild baby wombat away from its distressed mother.
Sam Jones, who describes herself as an “outdoor enthusiast and hunter” on Instagram, was filmed picking up a baby wombat by an unidentified road and running across it to a car, while its mother ran after them.
The man behind the camera can be heard laughing: “Look at the mother, it’s chasing after her!” The video, which was filmd in Australia, has since been deleted.
Ms Jones’s “appalling” behaviour could have caused severe harm to the wombats, conservationists say.
The Wombat Protection Society said it was shocked to see the “mishandling of a wombat joey in an apparent snatch for ‘social media likes'”.
“[She] then placed the vulnerable baby back onto a country road – potentially putting it at risk of becoming roadkill,” it noted in its statement, adding that it remains unclear if the joey reunited with its mother.
“I caught a baby wombat,” Ms Jones exclaimed in the video, while the joey, as it’s known, could be heard hissing and struggling in her grip.
Her caption in the now-deleted post read: “My dream of holding a wombat has been realised! Baby and mom slowly waddled back off together into the bush.”
Following the backlash, Ms Jones, who has more than 92,000 followers on Instagram, made her account private. But several media outlets had already shared the video – as well as earlier posts, said to be taken in Australia, which show her holding an echidna and a “little shark”.
Wombats, which are native to Australia, are a legally protected species across the country. Baby wombats share a strong bond with their mothers, and any separation can be distressing and harmful, conservationists say.
“Wombats are not a photo prop or plaything,” said Suzanne Milthorpe, Head of Campaigns at World Animal Protection Australia, in a statement online.
“It’s just unacceptable, and we’re glad she’s being called to account. Snatching a screaming baby wombat from their mother is not just appalling, it’s very possibly illegal under state or national laws,” Ms Milthrope said.
Some experts believe Ms Jones’s broke the law because Australia prohibits people from harming or taking native wildlife.
It is only allowed if the joey is in need of help because its mother has died, wildlife veterinarian Tania Bishop told ABC News.
Some Australians are calling for Ms Jones to be deported. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke told Sky News Australia her visa is being reviewed.
“Given the level of scrutiny that will happen if she ever applies for a visa again, I’ll be surprised if she even bothers,” he said.
An online petition supporting her deportation has received 10,500 signatures so far.