Rare twin orphan kangaroo joeys beat the odds after being rescued
TWIN joeys are a rarity, but these four-month-old brothers have beaten the odds by existing, surviving and now thriving after being rescued from their badly injured mother.
National
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THESE four-month-old twin brothers have beaten the odds over and over again.
Orphaned kangaroo joeys Andy and Zack were rescued from their mother’s pouch when she was euthanised after being found severely injured on a property in Yarrambat on Wednesday.
Wildlife Rescuers Inc volunteer Krysti Severi, 40, said it was devastating to say goodbye to the mother but amazing to discover the rare duo.
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“I held the mum and reassured her that we would look after her baby,” she said. “We pulled the first little joey out of the punch and then we’ve seen two more feet.”
The woman who called the rescuers named the pair in honour of Anzac Day.
University of Melbourne BioSciences Associate Professor Graeme Coulson said it was very rare for kangaroos to give birth to twins and even when they do, they rarely both survive.
“Standard twins are around about one per cent or a bit less, depending on the species,” he said.
“What usually happens is that the mother can’t carry the two of them so it’s very rare they would survive. A pouch is not designed for two.”
The brothers were dehydrated when they were first rescued but are now recovering in carer Julie Malherbe’s Heidelberg Heights home.
They will live there with other rescue roos until they are older and well enough to be released into the wild.
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Originally published as Rare twin orphan kangaroo joeys beat the odds after being rescued