By Marcus DunkLast updated at 2:04 AM on 15th May 2009
A stunning spring day in Norfolk and the green countryside resembles a scene on a picture postcard.
Yet out here, in this large field on the outskirts of the village of Tacolneston, there is something lurking in the long grass that seems somewhat out of place in such a quintessentially English scene.
'They're quite shy, so we'll have to hang back and keep quiet,' says Quintin Spratt, a 60-year-old farmer, as he makes his way across the field. 'Right, here they come!'
Suddenly, an explosion of movement comes bounding past us and, although we know what to expect, it is still a surprise to see a group of wallabies leaping through the air. Wallabies? Here, in England?
Yet, as disorientating as it is to see these Australian icons looking very much at home in an English field, what is more surprising is that this group is merely an advance party in what looks set to become an invasion.
On farms and in fields and gardens across the countryside, the small marsupials are increasingly taking the place of sheep, pigs and horses as low-maintenance lawnmowers.
As herbivores who spend most of their days eating grass, wallabies are the perfect animal for anybody with a bit of grassy land that needs clipping.
'I have a waiting list for them,' says Spratt, who has 20 wallabies and specialises in breeding rare albinos. 'I'm just trying to build up my stock at the moment, but it takes time as they breed only once a year.'
It is not difficult to see why these furry creatures have become so popular. Looking like a cross between a giant mouse and a fluffy rabbit, they tick all the cute boxes and have temperaments to match.
'They are amiable creatures, they don't make any noise and they're really quite hearty,' says Spratt.
'They're virtually adapted to this country now and they don't have any problem with the winters. And, of course, they can eat a lot of grass.
'So, if you've got the space, wallabies are perfect - and kids love them, too.'
Around £150 will get you a male wallaby, while females start at £600. Only one male is needed to breed with up to 25 females ('it's a pretty good life if you're the chosen male,' says Spratt).
The rarer albino females with pink eyes and fluffy white fur sell for around £1,000, and are proving popular in France and the Netherlands.
Although in their native Australia some species can grow to a height of 6ft, most are around two to three feet high and have a life expectancy of 12 to 15 years.
However, anybody with just a back garden hoping to keep a wallaby as a pet would be advised to think again.
As they're a group animal, most breeders will sell them only in pairs - 'it would be cruel on the animal to isolate it' says Spratt - and only to people who have plently of enclosed space.
'You need at least half an acre for a pair, along with a 9ft-high fence,' says Spratt. 'That's not only to keep the wallabies in, but to keep foxes out.
'They are cute, but they're not pets - they're a parkland animal and they need space. They're big grazers, and they won't show any sympathy for rosebushes.'
They also don't like dogs and are poor security guards. In fact, they are usually so timid that they tend to jump away from human contact.
Out in the field, four females have gathered around the slices of white bread Quintin has scattered about the field. Although they can eat bread, their main diet is grass, leaves and roots which they swallow without chewing, before regurgitating the cud and chewing on it.
They also have very little need for water and can go for months without drinking.
Although it is difficult to get too close, there is something mesmerising about the wallaby.
'Are they intelligent?' Spratt laughs. 'Well, I've never had a conversation with one,' he says. 'But they do seem to know what's going on.'
As we watch, the small white head of an albino pokes out of the pouch of one of the grey mothers. He sniffs the air and looks around for a moment, before tucking himself back inside.
'He'll make his way out in a couple of weeks' time,' says Spratt.
Even getting to this stage, however, is something of a feat. Like their larger cousin, the kangaroo, wallabies are less than an inch long when they are born and immediately set about crawling up through their mother's thick fur towards the pouch, where they then attach themselves to a teat. They are then suckled for between seven and nine months.
Spratt is fascinated by these animals, and for him, owning them is a dream come true.
'I've been on the farm all my life,' he says, 'and I've always been interested in exotic animals. I've bred rare peafowl since I was ten and that really is my main business now. I'm even taking a few down to the new Harry Potter film.
'We gradually moved out of agriculture as there was no money in it, and when a local breeder asked me to look after a few wallabies some years ago, I fell in love with them.'
Despite their Australian heritage, wallabies are in no way a new addition to the British countryside.
Feral populations have existed in England and Scotland for years, including notable colonies in the Peak District, which was established after five escaped from a local zoo in 1940, and a sizeable group on the island of Inchconnachan on Loch Lomond which were deliberately introduced there in the Twenties.
One of the oldest and largest colonies is at Leonardslee Gardens in Horsham, West Sussex, where wallabies from Tasmania were introduced by naturalist Sir Edmund Loder in 1889.
Forty descendants of this original colony still roam the gardens and lakes of this Grade-I listed attraction.
'We estimate that our wallabies do the work of two full-time gardeners,' says Robin Loder, great-great-grandson of Sir Edmund.
'We have a number of very steep, grassy banks and areas where it is impossible for a lawnmower to reach, but which the wallabies keep trim and in good order.
'We love them, because they also eat all the brambles but keep away from the plants and provide natural fertiliser for the bluebells and wildflowers as they go.'
Unlike rabbits, deer and other animals, the wallabies have a special feature that makes them uniquely suited to such a protected and fragile environment.
'They have a rubbery underside to their feet so they don't make deep tracks like other animals and they don't damage the micro-environment,' says Loder, 'and they tend not to use the same path twice. They're individuals.'
Loder believes there is little chance they will become a threat to native species in the manner of the grey squirrel.
'Wallabies occupy a niche that doesn't compete with any native species,' he says. 'They don't prey on other species and they don't take food from other animals.
'They work hard, they're totally green, they don't draw wages, they don't take holidays and they're wonderfully natured. What more could you want?'
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1181951/Meet-lawnmower-legs-Why-wallabies-taking-Englands-gardens-leaps-bounds.html
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