Brookfield Zoo welcomes — finally — three baby wallabies

Brookfield Zoo is finally getting around to announcing the arrival of three of its newest residents — one of which was born eight months ago.

That’s because Wallaby mothers don’t proudly display their newborn infants — called joeys — which come into the world at about the size of a bumble bee.

”We always have to end up sort of estimating the actual day of birth because we don’t see it. They come out weighing about a gram, climb their way up into the pouch and attach onto one of the teats, and then stay in that pouch as they continue to grow and develop for several months after that before we ever really see them,” said Michael Adkesson, Brookfield’s vice president of clinical medicine.

The three joeys were, based on estimates, born between late October 2020 and early December, staff say.

Like their close relative, the larger kangaroo, wallabies are marsupials native to Australia and hop from place to place. The joeys each currently weigh about 2 ¹⁄₂ pounds. They can weigh up to 60 pounds and reach a height of about 3 feet when fully grown, Adkesson said.

In the wild, wallabies inhabit coastal regions, woodlands and grasslands in Australia. The population is not currently endangered, according to zoo staff. But they are sometimes killed as an “agricultural pest” or hunted for their meat.

Brookfield’s wallabies — the zoo has a total of 29 — can be found in the Australia section and in the Wild Encounters area.

A Bennett’s wallaby joey born approximately on October 31, 2020, and its mom, Becky. The two can be seen at Brookfield Zoo’s Hamill Family Wild Encounters. | Jim Schulz/CZS-Brookfield Zoo

1 of 7

Maggie Chardell, a lead animal care specialist for the Chicago Zoological Society, feeds Whitney, a Bennett’s wallaby born at Brookfield Zoo on November 12, 2020. The young wallaby is being handreared by animal care staff because her mom required medical treatment. Out of an abundance of caution, veterinary staff determined it was in the best interest of both animals to remove the joey from the pouch. | Jim Schulz/CZS-Brookfield Zoo

2 of 7

Jill Gamsby, a senior animal care specialist for the Chicago Zoological Society, feeds Whitney, a Bennett’s wallaby born at Brookfield Zoo on November 12, 2020. The young wallaby is being handreared by animal care staff because her mom required medical treatment. Out of an abundance of caution, veterinary staff determined it was in the best interest of both animals to remove the joey from the pouch. | Jim Schulz/CZS-Brookfield Zoo

3 of 7

Jill Gamsby, a senior care specialist for the Chicago Zoological Society, interacts with Whitney, a Bennett’s wallaby joey who is being handreared at Brookfield Zoo. Whitney was born on November 12, 2020. | Jim Schulz/CZS-Brookfield Zoo

4 of 7

Whitney, a Bennett’s wallaby joey born on November 20, 2020, at Brookfield Zoo. | Jim Schulz/CZS-Brookfield Zoo

5 of 7

A Bennett’s wallaby joey born approximately on October 31, 2020, can be seen at Brookfield Zoo’s Hamill Family Wild Encounters. | Jim Schulz/CZS-Brookfield Zoo

6 of 7

A Bennett’s wallaby joey born approximately on October 31, 2020, and its mom, Becky. The two can be seen at Brookfield Zoo’s Hamill Family Wild Encounters. | Jim Schulz/CZS-Brookfield Zoo

7 of 7