Calls for US influencer Sam Jones to be deported after taking baby wombat from distressed mother for photo

An American influencer has left Australians gobsmacked after she was filmed grabbing a wild baby wombat for a photo opportunity, while its mother fretted nearby.

The footage, which has since been deleted, showed the woman catching the joey during the night at an unidentified roadside and running with it while it tries to wriggle out of her arms, clearly distressed.

The video, filmed by an Australian man who can be heard laughing, was posted by Sam Jones on Tuesday. She claims to be a “wildlife biologist and environmental scientist” and goes by the username @samstrays_somewhere on Instagram.

Ms Jones shared the disturbing video in a Reel, which she later removed amid controversy.

The distressing footage showed Ms Jones rushing towards her car with the joey swinging in her arms, while the mother desperately chased her.

‘”I caught a baby wombat,” Ms Jones could be heard saying, as the joey tries to escape her clutches and cries out.

“Okay, mum is right there and she is pissed. Let’s let him go.”

The man behind the scenes then replies: “Nah, he’s all right.”

Ms Jones then releases the joey back to its anxious mother.

The video has received serious backlash, with social media users reporting the video under “animal abuse” and calling for her to be deported back to the US.

“Let’s hope the Australian authorities don’t issue her any more holiday visas in the future!” one wrote.

“Arrest. Fine. Deport. Ban,” another said.

Initially, Ms Jones tried to defend her actions, telling viewers the joey was “unharmed” and only held for a moment.

“For everyone that’s worried and unhappy, the baby was carefully held for ONE minute in total and then released back to mum,” she wrote.

“They wandered back off into the bush together completely unharmed. I didn’t think I would be able to catch it in the first place, and took an opportunity to appreciate a really incredible animal up close.

“I don’t ever capture wildlife that will be harmed by my doing so.”

Despite her explanation and attempt to remove the video, it surfaced on other social platforms, including TikTok and Reddit, with disgusted Aussies and wildlife activists continuing to lash out at the influencer.

“As a wildlife rescuer specialising in wombats I can tell you... that this is an absolutely terrifying experience for mum and joey,” one person commented.

“Revolting, both her and the bloke with her. How the f**k they think that mum trying to get bubs back, and that baby screeching in terror, is funny and OK is absolutely beyond me. Soulless, gutless, heartless stuff,” another wrote.

“These ‘influencers’ are truly parasites who will do anything for some clicks,” another added.

WIRES Australian Wildlife Rescue Organisation condemned the video, confirming it was an illegal act with high penalties.

“This is just an extremely unacceptable way to treat our wildlife, which is already under incredible pressure right now,” WIRES Wildlife Vet Dr Tania Bishop told News Corp’s news.com.au, with wombats facing threats of habitat loss from bushfires, disease, vehicles, and climate change.

She explained the wombat featured was an at-foot joey, likely only around eight months old and still highly dependent on its mother.

Dr Bishop added the situation would have caused extreme distress to the mother, noting the way the joey was picked up could have also potentially caused an injury, because the animal’s heavy lower half wasn’t supported.

She reminded wildlife enthusiasts to look, take photos, but don’t touch when it came to Australia’s precious critters.

Ms Jones turned her public Instagram account, boasting 92,000 followers and many photos with animals she’d hunted, to private, as well as her TikTok account, on Wednesday.

Penalties for acts of animal cruelty vary across the country, but can reach as high as $235,600 for individuals and $250,000 for corporations, with potential imprisonment of up to seven years.

The Department of Home Affairs only considers cancelling a visa if there is a breach of a visa condition, including being charged with a criminal offence or being a risk to the community.