PATROLLING officer PC Lisa Clayton swore it wasn't an early Easter bunny she could see nibbling clumps of spring daffodils this week.

Driving home along Shard Lane after a long night shift on Tuesday, March 19, PC Clayton blinked at what she thought was a kangaroo on the kerb.

It was in fact Johnny the wallaby, of Greenacres Garden Centre, Hambleton. And perhaps it was the new season which put a spring in to Johnny's step as he skipped along just before sunrise. Mindful of the potential danger to motorists, PC Clayton leapt out of her car and chased the March marsupial off the road and into a field. And Johnny hopped the mile or so back to Greenacres before his owner, Frances Hedley, realised he was missing.

Frances runs an animal rescue and breeding centre and, in addition to her three wallabies, keeps pigmy goats, llamas, peacocks and ferrets.

"My wallabies are kept in a paddock and I think Johnny must have escaped via a gate left open by a visitor," said Frances.

"They're very friendly nocturnal animals who eat grass and hay, not daffodils," she added.

Neighbour, Peter Walmsley expressed concern about the wallabies' ability to jump high fences.

"I do feel it might be better for them to be kept in a zoo," he said.

We believe that Johnny's keeping a low profile after his Spring stroll!