last known wild thylacine shot in 1930

I'm absolutely fascinated by the Thylacine (Tasmanian Tiger), it was such a unique and primitive creature and amazingly, was still roaming the Tasmanian wilderness til at least the 1930's... Yet, we know next to nothing about it.

Of course, anyone that knows anything about this carnivorous marsupial with a canine like appearance, knows theirs no shortage of claimed sightings and people who will tell you they still exist... not only in Tasmania, but also on the Australian mainland. Every year or so I'll anxiously search the internet for that holy grail evidence that the Thylacine didn't actually go extinct. Yet, to my disappointment its always the same thing, just some blurry footage of what is clearly a mangy fox or wild dog.

So in my mind, it's becoming more and more unlikely as the years go on that a small population actually survived European occupation of there habitat. But I'll keep hoping and looking for that indisputable evidence.

In the meantime though, as far as I can tell, this radio interview of the man who shot the last documented Thylacine is the closet we can get to a detailed encounter with a wild Thylacine.



Two things stick out to me the most in this interview... Firstly, the guy mentions that this was the first Thylacine he'd ever seen or even heard, which suggest they were already incredibly rare. Also, by his description of the encounter, the Thylacines behavior didn't seem to be all that 'elusive'... I mean, it didn't seem like it was particularly all that keen on being caught either. But it definitely didn't sound like he was overly timid by being in the presence of humans, which you would think for the possibility of them to still exist, they would need to be.

Personally, I think they were still around right up to the 1960's and dare I say, as disgraceful as it is, were probably still being shot and hunted by farmers... But from all accounts the Tassie Tiger population was probably never all that plentiful even before European occupation... So probably never stood a chance once we started hunting it and destroying its habitat.

I'll still keep searching for that indisputable proof the marsupial wolf still exists though... Just even to have some footage of it hunting its prey would be a dream come true.

But, I guess for now, all we have is this...

I share your fascination with the Thylacine. The reports of Thylacine sightings from time to time and the vastness of the wilderness in Tasmania and Australia give me hope that they have managed to make it to the 21st century. There is an active Facebook page with Thylacoleo and Thylacine info, including sightings (you may know of it already). I'll try to post a link below--haven't tried that before on ATS.

www.facebook.com... t=group_activity

Edited to add: There are some folks on that Facebook page who believe that they have seen Thylacoleos as well. Their reports make for some interesting reading. Unlikely? Of course. But still interesting...

It's a sad story of man's impact. It would be a miracle if any are found alive after such a long time.

a reply to: Subaeruginosa

someone in China is probably cloning one as we speak

There have been some case, as you are probably aware, of animals being rediscovered after years of supposed extinction.
Maybe there are a few out there waiting for rediscovery. It's a slim chance, but you never know.