Wildlife Victoria reveal crazy cases of critter confusion

WILDLIFE rescuers are dealing with a case of critter confusion with callers to an animal emergency line mistaking kangaroos for bears and one thinking a goose was a koala.

WILDLIFE rescuers are dealing with a case of critter confusion with callers to an animal emergency line mistaking kangaroos for bears and one thinking a goose was a koala.

Bemused animal carers are turning into real-life pet detectives, with some calls even more obscure.

One call about a snake turned out to be a toy version of the reptile and an injured flying fox was actually a polystyrene ball.

Wildlife Victoria emergency response operator Andrew Cameron said identifying animals didn’t come as easily as most suspected.

WILD HORSES TO BE CULLED TO PROTECT VICTORIA’S ALPINE REGION

WILDLIFE VICTORIA OUTRAGED BY KANGAROO ATTACK

“We’ve had some called in as crocodiles but they’ve been blue tongue lizards and one where it’s been called up as a bear but it was actually a kangaroo,’’ he said.

Wildlife Victoria has one call-out to help a croc …

… but it was just a blue tongue lizard. Picture: Regi Varghese

“We get squirrels all the time that are brushtails (possums) but every now and then we’ll get the odd one here and there where it’s called up as a koala but it’s actually a goose.

“I went out to one that was called in as a kangaroo but it turned out to be a deer.”

Wildlife Victoria has kept a whiteboard of the quirky calls to help calltakers decipher instances of mistaken identity.

They also include a caller who thought a fox was a coyote and another who confused a sea eagle with a seagull.

In another case a rescuer responded to help a bat caught in a fence which on closer inspection was a black glossy dog poo bag.

“You get there and think: ‘How in the hell is that even remotely possible?’’’ Mr Cameron said.

“A lady called me privately and said ‘I’ve got a kangaroo on my property, it looks like it may be stuck in a fence, it’s not moving — it’s very large’ and I went out to it and it was just a deer standing next to a fence eating a tree in Warrandyte.”

[e-mail]