Tasmania’s Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water, and Environment (DPIPWE) has reported eight sightings of the Tasmanian tiger from over the past three years.
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The thylacine was declared extinct in 1936, when the last known died in captivity. His name was Benjamin.
There was an estimated 5000 thylacines in Tasmania at the time of European settlement, according to National Museum Australia. But excessive hunting, habitat destruction, and introduced diseases led to extinction.
However, according to the DPIPWE’s Thylacine Sightings report, the Tassie tiger might actually be alive and well.
A reported sighting, dated July 29 of this year, details how a man found a curious foot print while walking the Sleeping Beauty Mountain Trail. The bloke didn’t manage to grab a picture of the print but he believes it belongs to a thylacine.
I know that might not seem like much but there’s more. Stay with me.
February 18, 2018: A cyclist riding on the Lyell Highway, near King William Saddle, said they and a fellow rider saw a “large cat-like creature”.
“It didn’t really make sense to me as being a typical cat, location wise, behaviour and the way it walked, it was obvious it wasn’t a fox although it was the size of a big fox.
“… Later in the day my fellow rider brought the subject up of what he believed he had seen, being part of the following group we were not together at the time so both of us sighted this animal at different times.”
The cyclist described the animal’s body as being a darkish brown colour.
“It had several black stripes starting high at the rear hips and slanting towards its mid section.
“It had a long body, this is one aspect that made it look unlike any other animal I have seen before, like as long as a labrador but lower and thinner, so it looked stretched in a sense.”
February 25, 2018: A WA family visiting Corinna, Tasmania claim they saw a thylacine walk onto the road they were driving on.
“It was in clear view for 12-15 seconds. The animal had a stiff and firm tail, that was thick at the base. It had stripes down its back. It was the size of a large kelpie (bigger than a fox, smaller than a German shepherd). The animal was calm and did not act scared at all.”
I mean, that sounds pretty compelling to me. You can check out the full report right HERE.
If you’re keen on more thylacine action, PEDESTRIAN.TV’s All Aussie Mystery Hour spent a whole hour-ish discussing the Tassie tiger. Suss that episode out HERE.
You can find the podcast on iTunes, Spotify, or just listen/download it below.
