ANIMAL FACTS - Wombats
Wombats will only rear one young every two years. However, if the young dies and the conditions are good, she may raise another.
Wombats are Australian marsupial mammals that have very short muscular legs and are the closest relative to the Koala. They have a backwards facing pouch so that when they are nursing young in their pouch they can still dig burrows and not fill their pouch with soil! Wombats feed on grasses and roots (they are herbivores) and dig long extensive burrow systems with their powerful claws. Although the wombats at Australia Zoo are diurnal, in the wild, wombats are nocturnal and will rarely venture out during the day.
Wombats are generally slow movers however they can run quickly if required. Their best form of defence though is when they are in their burrow. Here if they are cornered they can crush their would be predator/attacker underground using a large solid plate in their backside against the roof of their burrow.
