Tasmanian Tiger
Tasmanian Tiger
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| COMMON NAME: | Thylacine or Tasmanian Tiger |
| LATIN NAME: | Thylacinus cynocephalus |
| MEANING: | Thylacinus - "pouched-dog"; cynocephalus - "dog- headed" |
| FOOD: | Marsupials and lambs (when introduced to Tasmania). |
| HABITAT: | Open forest and woodland with adjacent grassland. |
| STATUS: | Extinct |
| LOCALITY: | Tasmania |
| LENGTH: | Body: 1000-1300 mm Tail: 500-650 mm |
| WEIGHT: | 15-35 kg |
| BEHAVIOUR: |
Active mainly at night, sleeping by day in dense vegetation. It seems to have been unable to run fast but probably followed smaller animals until they became tired. They hunted singly, in pairs or with dependent young. Probably also preyed on slow-moving wallabies not long out of the pouch. It attacked lambs when sheep were introduced into Tasmania. The number killed seems not to have been large, but a substantial bounty was placed on Thylacine scalps and this led to heavy pressure on the species. |
| DEVELOPMENT: |
Breeding appears to have extended throughout the year, with a peak of births in winter and spring. Females had 4 teats in a backward-opening pouch. Up to 4 but usually 2 or 3 young were reared. After leaving the pouch, young were left in a nest until weaned. |
| DESCRIPTION: |
Presumed extinct in the 1930s. It had a remarkable resemblance, particularly in the head and forequarters, to a wild dog. However, examination of the skull shows that the space occupied by the brain was considerably smaller than in a dog - a fact which may help to explain the demise of the Thylacine on mainland Australia after the arrival of the Dingo, probably about 5000 years ago. Sandy brown, coarse fur, parallel dark brown bands across back, increasing in width towards the rump with dog-like head and forequarters; rump tapering into semi-rigid tail. Its eyes were said to be bright pale yellow. |
