Rex the Wallaby found safe after escaping animal farm in New Jersey

Rex, an approximately 3-year-old wallaby, escaped from a Gloucester County animal farm overnight Monday and was later found safe Tuesday night.

WILLIAMSTOWN - The search for a missing wallaby that escaped an animal farm overnight Monday has come to a hoppy end.

What we know:

Rex, an approximately 3-year-old wallaby, escaped the Lots of Love Farm in Williamstown after his owner says someone left a gate unlatched.

The animal was spotted in a Walmart parking lot on Black Horse Pike on Tuesday morning as the search continued.

Rex was later found near a fenced-in retention pond adjacent to the Walmart in Williamstown where he was spotted Tuesday morning.

What they're saying:

Lots of Love Farm owner Ron Layden said he brought Rex into a barn due to the brutal wind gusts and bitterly cold temperatures.

"Since it was so cold, I brought him in the barn, I made a little cage in the barn for him, and somehow it didn't get locked," he said.

The backstory:

Wallabies are described as medium-sized marsupials, native to Australia and New Guinea.

While related to kangaroos and known for their powerful jumping abilities, wallabies are generally smaller animals.