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French Kangaroos?

Locals near Emance, France have chuckled about their kangaroo population for years. Escapees thirty years ago from a local wildlife park, the small kangaroos--wallabies, to be precise--have built up a 50-strong community in the Rambouillet Forest. Kangaroos end up in more far-flung places than you'd expect: a motorcyclist hit a kangaroo in the Netherlands a few years back, and in 2003 police fielded hundreds of strange calls when a circus escapee started hopping around the streets of Vienna. Guess he must love Sacher torte.

But back in Rambouillet Forest, the French and the little 'roos lived happily ever after; until insurance claims enter the picture. A concerned Sydney newspaper recently reported about Emance residents whose insurance claims were rejected by French insurance companies. Sensibly, the company thought a collision with a kangaroo was an unlikely occurrence a mere hour away from Paris.

What's happening in the world? If we're not careful, there'll be grizzlies in the desert or deer swimming across the Pacific. It hardly seems like a fair trade for the French--they gave the Aussies the Syrah grape, and all they get in return is a marsupial?

[image source emmasnow/Flickr]

Related Stories:
·   Too many 'roos in Perth [The Australian]
·   Kangaroo causes crash [Lithgow Mercury]
·   Kangaroo Island [Adelaide Advertiser]