WESLEY, the wallaby who went walkabout and sparked a major police operation, has finally found some friends.

Three more marsupials have joined him at his new home - and love is in the air.

Wesley caused a stir in the outskirts of York last October when he went on the run by the city’s outer ring road.

The road had to be closed before he was finally captured – and to this day no-one is sure where he originally escaped from.

However nearby Askham Bryan Agricultural College took him in and gave him a home – where he has now been joined by three more wallabies – a male and two females.

The lead keeper at the college’s animal unit, Kate Maguire, said: “He’s been quite shy while he’s been with us but now he seems to be coming out of his shell a bit more.”

She said Wesley’s confidence was now growing – and there was even a chance of some baby wallabies in the future.

“We seem to have a new love interest in here already. They do seem to have separated themselves into pairs,” she said.

The wallabies will play a role in educating students on a number of courses at Askham Bryan, including animal management and veterinary nursing.

And a competition will soon take place among students to give names to the new arrivals, who came from the Yorkshire Wildlife Park in Doncaster.

“There’s a lot of excitement about the new additions,” said Kate.

“Students are really looking forward to coming down and working with these joeys.”