4 December 2008 Sue Young

Whilemina the Northern Hairy-nosed Wombat

Sold out 2008 Limited Edition Set of 30.
Original Price: AU$475.00
In June 2021 one of these puzzles sold on BaxterWeb Auction site for USD8,400.00 (that converts to about A$11,240.00). More than 20 times the original selling price!

A really gorgeous piece of puzzle sculpture that disguises a very high level framed burr puzzle with elements of Sequential Discovery. Brian’s own design; Whilemina the Northern Hairy-nosed Wombat. Her species are very much endangered and your purchase will also contribute directly to conservation efforts.

People around the world know kangaroos and koalas but they are not so aware of the wombat which is much loved downunder for it’s attitude when you see it in the bush. Known as “bulldozers of the bush” and often described by our irreverent Aussie colloquialism “Wombat’s eat roots, shoots and leaves”.

So, the object of the puzzle is to find Whilemina’s food, her baby called Warren, and the cubic poo**. You will need to use tools you find within the puzzle to do this. There is no force required at all to complete the puzzle and that means no hitting against your hand or another surface; all tools to complete the puzzle are supplied as part of the puzzle. Brian prefers to make puzzles where the clues to solve are visible; all you need to do is interpret them in the correct order.

The puzzle is made from Queensland Walnut. Queensland Walnut is a large rainforest tree restricted to growing in the coastal tablelands of North Queensland. The supply of this wood is very limited; almost as rare as the Wombat and no longer available commercially. Brian acquired a small amount of this wood many, many years ago and has now decided to use it for this very special project.

Size: From her nose to her tail is 180mm and she’s 80mm wide across the back.

View video of Brian demonstrating how Wilemina the Northern Hairy-nosed Wombat comes apart.

The Northern Hairy-nosed Wombat is one of the world’s most endangered species. At last count there were just 115 individuals in a single isolated population in Western Queensland, Australia. Although this does not sound like many it’s a vast improvement from the low of 35 individuals of the early 1980’s.

Mr Puzzle donated AUD 50.00 from the sale of each “Whilemina the Northern Hairy-nosed Wombat” puzzle to The Wombat Foundation. 

Staff from the Environmental Protection Agency (a Queensland Government Department) are directly involved in the conservation effort on the ground along with many willing volunteers. With donations they maintain food and water stations and buy equipment such as remote monitoring cameras which give valuable information about what wombats are up to. They also fund research including The Wombat Research Centre in Central Queensland. There is good evidence of young wombats and new burrow construction rates are at high levels. The increase in numbers and their willingness to utilise supplementary food and water from the feed stations gives the group more confidence to take the next step in meeting the objectives of the recovery plan which is to establish a second wild population of Northern Hairy-nosed Wombats. Plans are underway to translocate some wombats to a second site in mid 2009.

Update 17th December 2017.  Just saw this good news update. Wombat numbers estimated at 250 animals up from 115 when I made Whilemina! WooHoo!

Update 4th March 2023.   BREAKING: Queensland Government has purchased 2,800 hectares of important habitat in south-west Queensland to establish a new home for the northern hairy-nosed wombat.  Powrunna State Forest will become the third site in the state where we’ll introduce these much-loved creatures.  In the 80s, their population dwindled to as low as 35 but today because of ongoing conservation work they number more than 300

**Yes, it’s true, Wombat poo is puzzlingly cube shaped. It’s how they mark their territory and this way it won’t roll off a rock. Seems as though the animal was just made to be of particular interest to puzzlers!

Tags 2008, brian young