Abridged Translation of Wombat-zine vol.
1
p.2: What Is a Wombat? by Pontsuku
Bunko
Although the wombat is too often wrongly
thought to be a type of capybaras, it is not.
It is a marsupial close to the koala.
Wombats live in Australia, and have small
ears, a round back, fluffy whiskers, a
koala-like nose, incisors sometimes visible,
a hard buttock, short legs (but runs at
40km/h), sharp claws that enable digging, a
plump belly, a tiny tail, a pouch just
posterior to the female’s belly which people
call a ‘butt pocket’, hind legs pointing
inward, and the poos are cubic!! Being
nocturnal, they sleep in burrows in the
daytime. They don’t flock. Babies are
born immature, crawl into mothers’ ‘pocket’
and grow there. --------
Wombats that can been seen in Japan
The Ikeda City Municipal Satsukiyama Zoo,
Osaka: Five Tasmanian wombats live here
(being rather small is one of their traits).
Waine (29 y.o.!) Fuku <- Maru, the bride
Yuki <-couple-> Kou
This zoo is the only facility in Japan where
breeding has been successful.
streaming available.
The Nagano City Municipal Chausuyama
Zoo, Nagano: Two mainland wombats that
came from Taronga Zoo live here: Big
Momoko, and Wallace the Prince in the
Pipe, who transferred from Higashiyama
Zoo in May 2018.
Cover:
Wombat-zine
vol. 1 (the inaugural issue)
(Fans’ drawings of wombats,
from twitter)
p.1: Preamble by Pontsuku Bunko
Thank you for taking a look at the
Wombat-zine.
This magazine was created by the
wombat fans who responded to Pontsuku
Bunko’s invitation.
The resulting product of the great love of
wombats is such that it will entertain both
those who’ve already been fans for a while
and those who just recently came to be
interested in the species.
Already love wombats? You will do so
even more.
Now ladies and gentlemen, welcome to
the dazzling world of the wombat ...
p.3: Wombat Designs by Reirei Suzuko
A wombat can take various kinds of shapes
and positions. Basically its body is round
and fluffy. When sleeping with paws
folded inward it’s a Wommonite. Relaxing
means legs open, lying on its back (boys
have got the ). It can be very long at
times, or very flat. Its butt is also a round
good butt.
Wombat Café: Sometimes certain types of
food names are used to refer to this animal.
In its flat position it's a wombat éclair.
Perfectly round and no paws can be seen: a
wombat manju. If a wombat manju is
covered with dust it's a wombat
warabi-mochi. It can also be a wombat
“happy turn” when it’s a little bit fat. Poos
are cube chocolates, though the shapes
differ according to their “manufacturers”.
Live
p.4: Such Huge Cheeks! by Hoppēta
One of the cutest parts of a wombat is its
cheeks. Eight best poses when cheeks
show themselves prettiest are: when
digging, in its L shape, the “éclair” seen
from above, the “éclair” with the front paws
under the cheeks, …
p.6: His Majesty Pretty Fuku’s 10 Best
Postures by Fukuko
1 Sticking his tongue after yawning which I
call Fuku-lick♥ which is extremely,
agonizingly cute. Definitely a must-see!
2 Incisors. Slightly longer than average.
Grins with fresh green grass stuck in his
front teeth… OHH I can’t breathe♥♥♥
p.8 (cont.)
10 This big happy
smile!
The smile which brings a big fortune (“fuku”
in Japanese).
p.10: Felt Caps for Soft Toy Wombats by Fū
Prepare a felt cloth and a thread, both of
your favourite colour. Put the pattern
against the cloth, draw its shape with a
chalk pencil and cut it out. Stitch up two
petal-shaped parts, add one more, and
repeat this process to get two halves of the
cap.
p.12: Wombat Spots in Tasmania by
wombatman_take
1. Cradle Mountain St. Clair National Park:
On cloudy days wombats can be seen
grazing even in the daytime. A to get them back to the wild.
(Japanese) visitor even took a photo of a
joey poking its head from mom’s pouch.
2. Cradle Mountain Lodge: You may not
only see wombats but also wallabies and
even platypuses.
p.14: Let’s Talk about Maria Island, a
Wombat Paradise by Weekly Wombat
Maria Island is the best if you want to see
wild wombats. One night stay will promise
you an encounter. Bring a tent to enjoy
sleeping in the middle of the wombat
territory. In summer you can visit tourist
spots like the crystal-clear sea and the
Painted Cliff, though everywhere will be
much crowded. In winter it’s a little bit …
p.5 (cont.)
…the giant cheek pouches, cheeks resting
on a stair, when yawning, and when
sleeping in a vat.
p.7 (cont.)
3 Behaving himself with his hands neatly
put side by side.
4 Wet nose after drinking.
5 Whiskers curled inwards.
6 Kind droping eyes.
7 Y-shaped butt.
8 Bold and strong arms. Want to be held
tight in them.
9 Walking with toes turned inward.
p.9: Wallace at the Higashiyama Zoo by Fū
Wallace used to have a nap in his
sugnature plumbing pipe, and that's why he
was once called the Prince in the Pipe.
Zoo visitors could not always see him, and
in such times Wallace's fans even
appreciated the pipe itself saying to
themselves what a nice pipe. Endurance,
insight, appreciation, and imagination were
cultivated through those tough zoo visits.
p.11 (cont.)
Stitch up the two and add the top patch.
These caps will perfectly fit the soft toy
wombats sold at Satsukiyama Zoo.
p.13 (cont.)
3. Trowunna Wildlife Sanctuary: Three
young wombats came from here to
Satsukiyama Zoo. Cares orphaned joeys
4. Narawntapu National Park: Despite its
reputation as “wombat paradise” most of its
population fell victim to mange epidemic.
5. East Coast Nature World
6. Bonorong Wildlife Rescue
p.15 (cont.)
… cold but wombats may be out there
throughout the day. I am astonished by
the variety and diversity of individual
characters of wombats, and just observing
these cutest animals is a sheer bliss. But
we must not forget they are wildlife. We
must not feed them nor touch them.
Come visit the island yourself and find out
about its unique history, fauna and flora.
p.16: Wombat’s Tail by Kanakoala
KOALAS live on gumtrees, eat gumtree
leaves, are active at dawn and dusk, are
good at leaping from tree to tree, have big
ears, a big nose, a marsupium (f.) and a
scent gland (m.), bare immature babies,
weigh 5~15 kg, and excrete
capsule-shaped poos; whereas WOMBATS
live underground, eat grass, bark, roots, are
nocturnal, are good at dashing, have …
p.18: A Day of a Wombat by Penta
Fuku 1: Waiting for Maru (a female wombat)
to come out. My daily routine. / Not coming
yet? Not coming yet? / (Getting drowsy…) /
Full doormat position! (He wants Maru to
step on, maybe.)
Fuku 2: (Maru intimate with another male
Waine) / Hey Maru! / (Maru attached to the
keeper) / Hey Maru! (I’m afraid your already
flat nose will be crushed…)
p.20: Satsukiyama Zoo’s Wombat House by
Korotama
Satsukiyama Zoo's “Zookeeper Experience
Tour” participant Korotama's drawing of an
aerial view of the wombat house and
paddocks. Looking from inside, you can
see a name card put on each door to the
paddock, clockwise from top-right Kou
(English name Malcolm, m.), Yuki (Lucky,
f.), Fuku (Hector, m), Maru (Potato, f.),
Waine (m.) and the late Wandar (f.).
p.22: The Wombats in Japan that We Once
Could See by Pontsuku Bunko
As of 2018 there are only seven wombats in
two Japanese zoos, but once there used to
be many more.
Hiroki (’87-’15), Kanazawa Zoo: The three
wrinkles on his forehead was his charm.
Used to fall asleep on his back even when
he was outside in the public view.
Chewbacca (’87-’14), Tama Zoo: Round
eyes and the style of cuddling a log during
sleep attracted many visitors.
Goro (’92-’15), Hibiki Animal World: With his
bold physique and light fur colour Goro lived
the longest among the three that arrived at
Japan at the same time.
Wandar (’90-’17), Satsukiyama Zoo: With
such a chiseled face and a slim physique,
Wandar, mated with Waine, gave birth to
two daughters, Satsuki and Sakura. The
couple remained quite intimate until she
died in 2017.
p.17 (cont.)
… small ears, a flat nose, a marsupium (f.)
and a hard butt, bear immature babies,
weigh 15~30 kg, excrete cube-shaped
poos. Chewbacca at Tama Zoo was my
first wombat, and now my favorite is
gracious and gentle Waine the wombat at
Satsukiyama Zoo. I wonder if Waine
sleeps on his back with hind legs open, and
if Momoko is getting along with Wallace.
p.19: Wombat Glossary by Pontsuku Bunko
Wom-choco Crunch (n.): Used to refer to
either the chocolate snacks shaped like the
wombat poos, or the poos. / Wombat
San-zan (n.): The Three Sacred Mountains
of Wombats, i.e., Satsukiyama Zoo,
Higashiyama Zoo, and Chausuyama Zoo,
with “-yama” meaning a mountain reflecting
Japan's custom of mountain worshipping.
These used to be the only zoos in Japan to
breed and exhibit wombats around 2017.
p.21 (cont.)
Food is prepared inside the house, and the
menus include freshly cut grass, dried
grass, pellets, sweet potatoes, apples, and
pumpkins etc. Kitchen tools are washed
and sterilised after each use. Each time a
keeper goes into and out of the house, they
need to soak their boots in sterilising liquid
in the buckets. When turning on A/Cs
water is sprinkled so that the wind won't
blow up dust.
p.23: Let’s Meet in a Dream by wombat_yu
I'm Waine the wombat living in Satsukiyama
Zoo. And I like having a chat with my
neighbour Wandar after every meal.
She's quite a digger so dug an underground
burrow leading to my room's wall, which she
knocks to prompt me to come and talk
about a variety of things. Sometimes we
talk about our younger days and sometimes
we even talk about Fuku. / But then, it was
the season of the year when fallen ginkgo
leaves were about to make beautiful golden
rugs, that she ceased from the knocking.
Where are you? I called out. No
response. The golden rugs started to
reveal themselves. I had almost given up
waiting for her knocks when I fell asleep to
have a strange dream, where Wandar
emerged in my drowsy mind from nowhere
and said ... / Waine, from today on we'll
start talking when you fall asleep. No
worries, 'cause I'll know when you're
sleeping. / Since then she never fails to visit
me in my dream. Day or night. The
same old chatting time. Thanks, Wandar.
p.24: The Days when Ayaha was There by
Gogatsu
Ayaha (English name Henna): Born in
Australia in 2004, came to Japan with Fuku
(Hector) in November 2007. The zoo's
live streaming channel called “Wombat TV”
commenced to broadcast in May 1, 2009.
Ayaha passed away in May 1, 2010.
Within the frames of newly setup “Wombat
TV” moved Ayaha's freewheeling, rather
modest-sized figure. Carelessly slept on
her back with hind legs wide open. Half
an hour before the feed time she would start
to furiously charge the door. While the
keepers cleaned, she would interrupt by
constantly bashing the broomstick, or at
times start digging a burrow as if to “help”
with the cleaning.
p.26: (1) Wombats and I (2) Messages to
Wombats in Japan by Platoon Cdr Maroro
The nine wombats I know of: Waine (m.),
Wandar (f.), Fuku (m.), Maru (f.), Yuki (f.),
Kou (m.), Sumire (f.), Momoko (f.), Wallace
(m.). Wandar and Sumire have passed
away and there are seven wombats alive in
Japan.
p.28 (cont.)
Waine, male, Satsukiyama Zoo
The eldest wombat in Japan with the age of
approximately 100 in terms of human years.
It gives a sense of relief to see him walking
out in the paddock. Long live Waine!
Wandar, female, Satsukiyama Zoo
It came as a shock when we first heard the
news of your passing away. You were a
wonderful mother, who gave birth to two
healthy daughters in such a distant foreign
country.
Fuku, male, Satsukoiyama Zoo
The first wombat I came to know of. Plays
with the Shelter (a plastic tub) and sleeps
on his back with open legs. Funny
anecdotes about wombats going viral
almost always come from Fuku. Hope
Maru will like you more.
p.30 (cont.)
Sumire, female, Chausuyama Zoo
I had never been able to meet her while she
was alive. Strange to say this, but the
news of Sumire's death bonded me with
other “wombatters” (wombat lovers/fans)
especially from the eastern part of Japan.
Momoko, female, Chausuyama Zoo
She too enabled me to connect with eastern
Japan wombatters. She used to
mesmerize visitors in interactive programs
(not available recently).
Wallace, male, Higashiyama Zoo ->
Chausuyama Zoo
Despite the sudden transfer, he tries hard to
get along with Momoko. How touching!
p.25 (cont.)
Being the youngest of the “family”, Ayaha
was quick to capture my attention and fill
my days with happy moments. Precisely
one year after the installation of the
Wombat TV, those seemingly ever-lasting
joyful days came to an end, making it
impossible ever to meet her just once again.
It still torments me to think about when I first
saw the signboard displaying the “NOTICE”.
Mischievous, gluttonous, curious, and even
a little bit sentimental in a rainy day. Little
Ayaha. Without you I wouldn't have come
to be so addicted to wombats. Thank you
Ayaha, I can't forget the days with you for
ever.
p.27 (cont.)
About two years ago while commuting I
found an online article of Satsukiyama Zoo,
which featured the Keeper Girls, the city’s
idol group / PR ambassadors. It explained
Japanese wombat population going extinct
and the zoo’s efforts to breed them. I
started to visit the zoo and go to the idols’
concerts. Like Koalas and wallabies,
wombats are “ambassadors” from Australia.
p.29 (cont.)
Maru, female, Satsukiyama Zoo
On the first day when the unveiling event
was cancelled due to heavy rain, Maru's
appearance cheered up many fans and
visitors. Looks still too young for love
affairs, but it won't be long before ... Well,
maybe.
Yuki, female, Satsukiyama Zoo
The white fur of her right hand gave her
both the English name Lucky and the
Japanese name Yuki, which rhymes, and
means “snow”. Vice-Curator Sejima
admits he had never seen fur like that.
Kou, male, Satsukiyama Zoo
On his first days in Japan it came as a bit of
concern when Kou tended to withdraw in his
burrow. But lately he's eating much and
doing well. May you live happily with Yuki.
p.31 (cont.)
Thank you for following through those
lengthy passages. I’m not very good at
either writing or drawing, but what I have
just expressed on the preceding pages
comes completely from my love for
wombats. Excuse my drawings because
they may not look like the actual wombats
being referred to. I wanted to write
messages for Hiroki and Chewbacca but I
didn’t know enough about them, so I
decided to write about the wombats that
have been around in Japan after I became
a wombatter.
p.32: Visiting Kangaroo Valley by Onifusube
We went to a camp site near Kangaroo
Valley which according to people on the
internet is “full of wombats.” Discovered
tons of wombat cubic poos and burrow
entrances built on slopes, which reminded
us of Chausuyama Zoo. Some wombats
never cared about human approach, which
caused a concern that visitors might be able
to touch or feed them. But others were
defensive enough to turn their butts toward
us at the entrance of the burrow – they were
going to crush our skulls! No, thank you.
A lady at a souvenir shop in Kangaroo
Valley told us about the townspeople’s
concern over mange and road kills. She
also taught us that there is a wombat carer
group in the town called Wisdom Wombat.
This experience was a shock to us because
we had only known about healthy pretty
wombats. We also came across dead
ones lying on the side of the road. Seeing
wombats with severe mange was a torture,
because there was nothing we could do for
them. I was sure of one thing: We need to
start doing something.
p.34: Visiting Sleepy Burrows by Yuto
We became “Wombassadors” in March
2018, and this summer (i.e. winter in
Australia) we had a great opportunity to visit
the Sleepy Burrows Wombat Sanctuary,
located 20 min. drive away from Gundaroo,
NSW.
Ms Beth Nasser, the SBWS carer, showed
us around the property, introducing Mike the
one-eyed and Lady Jane who was attached
to the carer, which means she needed to be
dehumanised before release. The facility
consisted of Kindergarten, Primary School,
Secondary School, and then University,
through which the wombats gradually learn
to live on their own. University allows
them to live quite like wild wombats do, and
when the time comes, the gate will be left
open so it's up to the wombat to go away
into the bush or stay for a little while.
p.36: Satsukiyama Zoo Backyard Tour by
Matsuda98
I participated in the wombat backyard tour
offered to Wombat TV donators by
Satsukiyama Zoo. One thing I had wanted
to ask the zookeeper was whether the
wombats I had seen at Trowunna Wildlife
Park were Yuki and Kou. I was sure one
of them was Yuki because her paw was
covered with white fur, whereas I couldn't
tell if the other was Kou. So I asked
showing a picture in my phone, and
immediately the answer came back: No it's
not Malcolm (English name for Kou). I
was astonished how quickly he recognized
a wombat's face.
p.33: Visiting Taronga Zoo by Onifusube
Visited Taronga Zoo, where Momoko and
Wallace are from, and discovered an
excellent BURROW not wombat! Inside a
very realistic imitation burrow lay a common
wombat. Barely visible, which probably
was good for the wombat. SHNWs lived
there too. One of the keepers, Mr Brett
Finlayson, kindly had a talk with us. One
thing that surprised him was the longevity of
Japanese wombats that allowed Sumire to
live up to be 26 and Wandar 29. A
wombat couple of a 21 y.o. male and a 25
y.o. female was also a surprise to him.
When he watched footage of Momoko's
vocalisation at Wallace and Wallace giving
a stick to Momoko, he told us something we
never expected: Vocalising, biting, and even
attacking to some extent are all part of
natural wombat communication, and
Momoko is undoubtedly very interested in
Wallace, which suggests putting the two in
the same enclosure would actually work. I
remembered wild wombats having scars
and injuries all over. What I learned at
Taronga was extremely valuable; I blindly
believed the two should live apart, but now
wombats have dropped from my eyes.
p.35: (cont.)
In the following hour we were allowed into
the house, where three little wombats
welcomed us. We had a wonderful
opportunity to feed milk to Marshal. Each
teat is different in size and shape. Dusty
was an extremely playful and bitey wombat.
When she bit, her wide open eyes gave a
little horrifying impression, but actually she
was just playing and her bites were never
anything more than soft nips. Before
leaving, we gave a Thank You Photobook
and some donation. We'll never forget
Beth saying everyone likes tiny baby
animals but she loves BIG wombats... So
do we!
p.37: A Day of a Wombat by Penta
A Cute Figure: Plumpy torso chubby-tubby
back. / Fluffy puffy 'round the waist. / Legs
are short, cute, and turned inward.
(Munch, munch.) / A front view is even
cuter...
Wombatrain: Rattle, rattle... / Clutter,
clutter... / STOP! Bump! / Gives me
euphoria.
p.38: Editorial Postscript and Credits by
Pontsuku Bunko
So, how was it? Enjoyed the full charm
of wombats? If you want to know more
about wombats, do go and actually meet
them. You'll find out how cute, big,
unique, or [Fill in the Blank] they are!
You can also learn about wombats on
twitter. Just search for #wombat and you'll
get tons of pictures and stories.
Satsukiyama Zoo's live streaming “Wombat
TV” is also my recommendation.
I would like to express my gratitude to
the writers who joined the project, and to
everyone who supported the publication of
the zine. Without any of these people, this
fluffy, plumpy, crammed-with-wombat-love
book was impossible.
Keep on supporting wombats with us!
Writers (omit)
Please note that: Although this book
contains information about Satsukiyama
Zoo, Chausuyama Zoo, and other facilities
in and out of Japan, all such information is
based on the writers' subjective experience
and does not guarantee its validity.
p.40
Wombat-zine vol. 1 (the inaugural issue)
First published on September 15, 2018.
p.39
Wombat-zine vol. 2 to be published!!
- Your wombat-visiting experience
- Your novels with personified wombats as
characters
- How you came to like wombats
- Drawings and cartoons
Every form of expression of your wombat
love is welcome.
If you are interested, please contact:
Pontsuku Bunko (hanpenspy@yahoo.co.jp
or twitter: @hanpenspy).
If you are a bookstore purchase clerk or a
person of an equivalent position at any type
of store, and intend to retail this book,
please contact me. No-returns basis
purchase of more than three copies only.
Other fees to be consulted with.
The profit made from the Wombat-zine will
be used as donations for zoos that breed
wombats and other activities for promoting
wombat happiness.

Authors: Reirei Suzuko / Hoppēta / Fukuko /

Fū / wombatman_take / Weekly Wombat /
Kanakoala / Penta / Korotama / wombat_yu
/ Gogatsu / Platoon Commander Maroro /
Onifusube / Yuto / Matsuda98 / Pontsuku
Bunko

Cover of this book: Drawings collected

through the hash tag #ウォンバット描
いてみた (I drew a wombat) on twitter.

Publisher: Pontsuku Bunko

Postcode 573-0066
At Rokuno's, 67-4-502, Ikaga-Nishimachi
Town, Hirakata City, Osaka, Japan
hanpenspy@yahoo.co.jp
twitter: @hanpenspy (Pontsuku Bunko)

Duplicating of this book by any method

including copying, scanning, digitizing etc. is
strictly prohibited apart from the exceptions
under the copyright law. Anyone except
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The profits made from this book, after

subtracting expenses of publication, will be
donated to wombat related facilities and
wombat protecting activities in and outside
Japan.