April 14 (UPI) — The Memphis Zoo in Tennessee said a wallaby escaped its new marsupial exhibit amid flash flooding from severe thunderstorms.
The zoo said in a Facebook post that the KangaZoo Outback Experience exhibit, which opened March 17, was evacuated Wednesday when severe thunderstorms caused flash flooding in the habitats.
The animals from the exhibit were evacuated to the zoo’s animal hospital for safekeeping.
“Upon counting the animals, one wallaby was unaccounted for,” the post said.
Zookeepers searched for the wallaby Wednesday evening and the search resumed Thursday morning, but the marsupial had not been found as of Thursday afternoon.
The zoo said the Memphis Police Department is assisting with the search. Members of the public are being asked not to approach the wallaby if it is spotted on the loose.
“They are gentle animals, but fairly skittish,” the post said.
