Wallaby spotted roaming English golf club

Golfers at a Nottinghamshire club have had an unusual visitor roaming the fairways in recent weeks - a wallaby.

The marsupial, native to Australia and New Guinea, was first sighted by staff at Oakmere Golf Club on July 29.

Since then members have seen the wallaby a couple more times - doing their best to snap some photos.

Various nicknames have been mooted for the animal, according to NottinghamshireLive.

But the favourite is 'Holly Wallaby' - after the former This Morning host.

Daryl St John Jones, director of golf at Oakmere, said the animal usually makes an appearance in the evenings or early in the morning.

He said: "The wallaby was first spotted on Monday July 29 and was seen all week after. But there haven't been any photographs in the past few days.

"It only seems to come out in the evening or early in the morning."

Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust has received several reports of the wallaby, which it believes escaped from a private collection.

However, Mr Jones said the organisation is happy to leave the animal to wander and live in the countryside.

He added: "The Wildlife Trust aren't interested in catching it as they said it eats grass and can live in the countryside."

Posting on Facebook after the wallaby was first spotted, the club said: "Missing wallaby spotted on Oakmere's 12th tee. Hadn’t booked a tee time."

Wallabies belong to the same family as kangaroos but are generally smaller.

They are herbivores and live on average for nine years.

The marsupials are native to Australia and New Guinea, but populations have been introduced in other countries.

One study estimates that fewer than 100 wallabies live in the wild in the UK - largely escaped from private collections and zoos.