American tourist causes international outrage after posting wombat video
A social media influencer named Sam Jones recently went viral for picking up a baby wombat and taking it away from its mother, before eventually letting the young marsupial go. (Credit: @samstrays_somewhere/Instagram)
An American tourist and Instagram influencer was recently slammed on social media for posting a video of herself taking a baby wombat from its mother.
Sam Jones, who has nearly 100,000 Instagram followers under the handle @samstrays_somewhere, left Australia on Friday after her wombat video landed her in hot water with local authorities.
The Instagram reel shows Jones picking up the wombat and running away from its mother as the cameraman laughs. The mother initially runs away from Jones out of fear, and paces back to retrieve her child as the baby marsupial dangles in Jones' hands.
"Look at the mother! It's like, chasing after us," the amused cameraman is heard saying.
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Sam Jones, who has nearly 100,000 Instagram followers under the handle @samstrays_somewhere, left Australia in the wake of the video. (@samstrays_somewhere)
"I got the baby wombat," Jones exuberantly said as the baby squirmed and hissed.
"Okay, momma's right there, and she is pissed," the social media influencer said soon after. "Let's let him go."
Jones is then seen freeing the animal, though it is unclear in the video if the baby reunited with its mother, who disappeared into the tall grass.
The video received scorn from across the world – and across multiple social media platforms – over the past few days.
"The baby wombat was so distressed, and the way she roughly grabbed it under the arms running with it was terrible," one X user said. "What sort of horrible person would do this? I hope she loses all her social media followers."
"The baby is clearly upset and the mom went after them," another commentator said. "She was dangling the poor baby from the arms, too. I hope she is never allowed back."
The video shows the wombat's distressed mother walking towards Sam Jones. (@samstrays_somewhere)
After being alerted to the incident, Australian authorities were reviewing Jones' visa at the time that she left the country. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also weighed in on the video and condemned Jones for picking up the baby animal.
"To take a baby wombat from its mother and clearly causing distress from the mother is just an outrage," Albanese told reporters on Thursday. "I suggest to this so-called influencer, maybe she might try some other Australian animals."
"Take a baby crocodile from its mother and see how you go there, take another animal that can actually fight back… see how you go there."
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However, in a lengthy statement posted on Instagram on Friday, Jones said she wanted to help the animals get off the road safely, as she was worried they might get hit.
Australian PM Anthony Albanese slammed the U.S. influencer who picked up the baby wombat. (Getty Images / @samstrays_somewhere)
Baby wombats are called "joeys."
Jones wrote she was concerned the joey might be sick or injured so she made a "snap judgement" [sic] to pick it up.
"I ran, not to rip the joey away from its mother, but from fear she might attack me," she described. "The snap judgement [sic] I made in these moments was never from a place of harm or stealing the joey."
The social media creator added that she returned the baby marsupial to its mother and made sure they got off the road together.
"I have done a great deal of reflection on this situation and have realized that I did not handle this situation as best as I should have," Jones wrote. "Regardless, my only intent was to prevent these amazing animals from being hit, and making sure the joey wasn't in need of immediate care. I have learned from this situation, and am truly sorry for the distress I have caused."
Jones emphasized that the incident was "never about social media or getting likes."
FILE- A baby wombat, known as a joey, and its mother seen in Tasmania. (iStock)
"This was not staged, nor was it done for entertainment," she concluded. "In my excitement and concern, I acted too quickly and then failed to provide necessary context to viewers online."
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Fox News Digital reached out to Jones for additional comment, but did not immediately hear back.
Fox News Digital's Sophia Compton contributed to this report.
