Where the devil is Mary? Search under way after Tasmanian marsupial escapes Gold Coast wildlife park

A search is under way on Queensland’s Gold Coast for a missing Tasmanian devil who escaped her enclosure in a daring early morning dash caught on camera.

The devil, named Mary, did a Houdini from the Paradise Country theme park, escaping from quarantine in the early hours of Tuesday.

CCTV cameras caught the carnivorous marsupial skulking around deserted grounds at 4am that morning – before she scampered out of frame.

As of Wednesday afternoon, despite a dozen of the park’s wildlife team scouring the area – alongside a drone operator with thermal imaging capabilities – Mary remained on the lam.

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So how did Mary escape? Paradise Country curator of animals, Lauren Mousley, says that remains “a bit of mystery”.

“At the moment, we do think that an abnormally large leap has happened – and that is how she has breached out of her quarantine area,” she says in a video interview released by the Village Roadshow, which operates several theme parks on the Gold Coast.

Mousley says staff were not only shocked that an animal had escaped when they made the discovery at about 7.30am on Tuesday – they couldn’t believe it was Mary.

Mary and her companion, Mavka, were not long arrived from a zoological facility in New South Wales, according to a spokesperson.

Mary is two, Mousley says, an age at which devils “can be a little bit more adventurous”.

“But – we’ve only known her a short period of time – and what we do know about her is that she is extremely shy and, when there is movement, she tends to bunker down,” the zookeeper says.

“So finding that she was the one that, uh, headed out, is very, very abnormal, given her demeanour”.

Nonetheless, Mousley warns the public against approaching Mary.

“We have conducted a full perimeter search of Paradise Country – but if people do locate her outside the perimeter, they are encouraged to call Wildcare on their hotline number [07 5527 2444],” she says.

“Do not approach the animal. Devils can be reactive if they are provoked or if anyone attempts to catch them. So please call Wildcare”.

McCallum says it is not only overly inquisitive humans to whom Mary could pose a risk.

“Devils are not only scavengers, they do actively hunt,” the Tasmanian devil facial tumour expert says. “If I were a brush tailed possum … I’d be a bit nervous,”

Stray cats and foxes, too, may be feeling a little on edge. Which is precisely the reason why some have proposed the native carnivores be brought back to mainland Australia.