# The Tasmanian Tiger



## Tassie97 (Dec 17, 2011)

[video=youtube;1EDDfxBEugQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1EDDfxBEugQ&amp;feature=g-u&amp;context=G21a1d5eFUAAAAAAAAAA[/video]

Home - Thylacine . Research . Unit .

[video=youtube;4s_G7RWt4FY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&amp;v=4s_G7RWt4FY[/video]


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## Snake Catcher Victoria (Dec 17, 2011)

Surely only a romantic old fool would believe 
there is still a chance of surviving pockets of tigers left in the Tassie bush.
Ive been called worse.


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## FAY (Dec 17, 2011)

hahaha I would love to think there was.With that experiment, they are just proving how they can be elusive. You just never know..


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## SteveNT (Dec 17, 2011)

David Fleay was bitten on the bum by the last known Thylacine and carried the scars to the grave.

I believe a survey was taken of every barbed wire fenceline in Tasmania without a single TT hair being found.

Wish I was wrong but I think they're gone.


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## Tassie97 (Dec 17, 2011)

[video=youtube;CCILrT7IMHc]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&amp;v=CCILrT7IMHc[/video]

[video=youtube;jqdFFkabyZk]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqdFFkabyZk&amp;feature=related[/video]
im hopeful


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## JasonL (Dec 17, 2011)

I'd rather pin hope on finding a gastric brooder first...


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## SteveNT (Dec 17, 2011)

There is no better lesson in the value of preservation of biodiversity than the loss of that frog (gastric brooder). 

Every person with a stomach ulcer or related issues found then lost a cure in that short story.


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## solar 17 (Dec 17, 2011)

Those people that are against the oenpelli being bought into collections need to think about the tassie tiger's history or lack there of.
.........solar 17 (baden)


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## SteveNT (Dec 17, 2011)

I'm not hearing from countrymen that Oenpellis are disapearing. I'll bet this information is from "stupid whitefellas". 

Countrymen dont meet them often (diurnal v nocturnal) but they certainly see their signs.


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## richoman_3 (Dec 17, 2011)

id hope there are some there!
as usual the videos of 'tassie tigers' are blurry and far away .. no suprise
and that 2nd video is just ... awkward :S


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## JasonL (Dec 17, 2011)

ha, if tassie tigers were being bred by private breeders, we would have removed all the stripes, had fully striped, and both in a dozen different colour varieties!! I don't think captive held animals represent much in the way of wild ones, a case of two in the bush is worth 1000,000 in the hand.


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## Sutto82 (Dec 17, 2011)

Did anyone here see the Aussie movie called The Hunter? Filmed in Tassie about a merc hired to find the Tassie tiger. Brilliant movie, check it out when it comes to DVD since it finished at the cinemas months ago.


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## james.5 (Dec 17, 2011)

In one of the sighting videos, 2009 one, the Tigers tail bends; however the Tigers tail was rigid.

It would be nice if thy were still out there though


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## waruikazi (Dec 21, 2011)

I saw a thylacine in Arnhem Land...


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## black_headed_mon (Dec 21, 2011)

just wondering if anyone has seen the 2 headed human down that way......???while were on strange sightings!!!!


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## Poggle (Dec 21, 2011)

Tas, from another Tassie bloke dont stress bout the 2 headed comments, those victorions are cast off from Tas  . I believe in all my hope there is some left. BUT WOW Bill has gotten hairy!

Remember this Tas, just because we dont see it doesnt mean it still doesnt exist. They may be extinct, hoping they are not. Not many people are down nears hells gate on south west.


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## Nighthawk (Dec 21, 2011)

Like the NZ Moa... some days I like to allow myself to believe they're still around. Hope is a marvellous emotion to wash a tired spirit in.


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## Kimberlyann (Dec 21, 2011)

I like to think there is some slight chance that some where there is, it make's me sick to think about what humans have done to this planet


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## moosenoose (Dec 21, 2011)

richoman_3 said:


> id hope there are some there!
> as usual the videos of 'tassie tigers' are blurry and far away .. no suprise
> and that 2nd video is just ... awkward :S




I know! Where on earth do people buy a camera that takes such incredibly crap footage! Geeesh that digital stuff they are selling these days is terrible! :lol:

Add me to the romantics list hoping that they are still around. Such a spectacular creature, wiped out by human beings. Terrible!


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## Tassie97 (Dec 21, 2011)

yer bill is hairy now lol check some of his other vids  his art is amazing billflowers's Channel - YouTube


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## Jeffa (Dec 21, 2011)

I would love to think that there is a few out there, but even if there is how inbred and unpure would the species be? There was info a decade back about the possibility of cloning these guys, but there surrogate hosts were too small. To have a strong breeding programn set in place I believe you would need a population of at least 35 unrelated animals (mammals) to keep the species pure. Either way they are doomed.
Just glad we have a programn set in place fot the Tassie Devil for when they become exctint in the wild.


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## Tassie97 (Dec 21, 2011)

Jeffa said:


> I would love to think that there is a few out there, but even if there is how inbred and unpure would the species be? There was info a decade back about the possibility of cloning these guys, but there surrogate hosts were too small. To have a strong breeding programn set in place I believe you would need a population of at least 35 unrelated animals (mammals) to keep the species pure. Either way they are doomed.
> Just glad we have a programn set in place fot the Tassie Devil for* IF* they become exctint in the wild.


just fixed that up ^  hope they last -.- we are terrible things us humans


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## imported_Varanus (Dec 21, 2011)

People will believe anything....like man landed on the moon! Some of that footage is definately a common or garden variety dog suffering from mange and the starvation/ poor condition that usually accompanies it.

If some reports are to be believed, we now have Thylacines on the mainland again!! (call me a sceptic....no, not a septic)


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## gregcranston (Dec 21, 2011)

I've always been fascinated by the Thylacine and the chance they still could be out there for many years. You can't rule it out completely, but the chances are super low. Even if there were 100 animals still out there, it would have to be a multi-million dollar program thoughout all of the most remote parts of Tasmania to search for them. I'm guessing with lots and lots of motion sensing cameras.
I was thinking recently, I wonder if the massive decline in Tassie Devil numbers recently might aid the re-emergence of the Thylacine. But given the fox is now down there in Tassie, it will probably just help those buggers!
Yeah, sighting of potential Thylacine's on mainland Australia really doesn't help the credibility of the Tasmanian sightings!


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## SteveNT (Dec 21, 2011)

waruikazi said:


> I saw a thylacine in Arnhem Land...



That's no thylacine. But there is a nice painting of one 50 meters away (been all over Injaluk Hill about 30 times.

Here's the only known marsupial lion painting, from the Kimberly




I dont think it's one of those either, they had a short face, massive forearms, front fangs and the rest of the teeth fused into shears. If they were still around I'd be packing heat on my bush strolls!


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## Tassie97 (Dec 21, 2011)

the fox is here but not common at all. as common as a tasmanian tiger one might say


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## SteveNT (Dec 21, 2011)

Jeffa said:


> I would love to think that there is a few out there, but even if there is how inbred and unpure would the species be? There was info a decade back about the possibility of cloning these guys, but there surrogate hosts were too small. To have a strong breeding programn set in place I believe you would need a population of at least 35 unrelated animals (mammals) to keep the species pure. Either way they are doomed.
> Just glad we have a programn set in place fot the Tassie Devil for when they become exctint in the wild.



Why would a host be too small, marsupials are minute at birth.


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## waruikazi (Dec 21, 2011)

What is it then? Don't think i'd like to run into one on a dark night still.



SteveNT said:


> That's no thylacine. But there is a nice painting of one 50 meters away (been all over Injaluk Hill about 30 times.
> 
> Here's the only known marsupial lion painting, from the Kimberly
> 
> ...


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## SteveNT (Dec 21, 2011)

My first trip up Injauk was with two white haired fellas. I asked the same question and was told it was a quoll (obviously from a carlia skink's perspective.)

Sum total of many questions (same one each time, with variations) over 30 years.

Dunno!

But not thylacine or thylacoleo.


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## waruikazi (Dec 21, 2011)

I can't take a word of most of those guides seriously, they just tell the dumb balanda tourists what they think we want to hear lol. Until you get to know the smart ones of course. 

I only called that one a thylacine because i saw it in an article about thylacines in Arnhem, i always thought it looked a little off though. But you would know as well as i do Steve, there's some depictions of animals in some of these caves that would have to be made up! I'll see if i can fish out some the crazy lookin ones i've seen.



SteveNT said:


> My first trip up Injauk was with two white haired fellas. I asked the same question and was told it was a quoll (obviously from a carlia skink's perspective.)
> 
> Sum total of many questions (same one each time, with variations) over 30 years.
> 
> ...



Like this thing, what the hell is this meant to represent?!?!?! A drop bear?


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## chickensnake (Dec 21, 2011)

Its a one legged person doing the toyota jump of course 



Like this thing, what the hell is this meant to represent?!?!?! A drop bear?




[/QUOTE]


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## waruikazi (Dec 21, 2011)

Lol chicken, it could well be!


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## SteveNT (Dec 21, 2011)

waruikazi said:


> I can't take a word of most of those guides seriously, they just tell the dumb balanda tourists what they think we want to hear lol. Until you get to know the smart ones of course.
> 
> I only called that one a thylacine because i saw it in an article about thylacines in Arnhem, i always thought it looked a little off though. But you would know as well as i do Steve, there's some depictions of animals in some of these caves that would have to be made up! I'll see if i can fish out some the crazy lookin ones i've seen.
> 
> ...



never seen anyone falling off a boat (or building)? Someone depicting a moment of mirth perhaps. Most of the fish paintings are brags.

Oh and early days there were no "guides". I've spent time up there with all ages and both genders. Always a revelation.


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## waruikazi (Dec 21, 2011)

Best idea i can come up with is it kids being initiated to be rock painters just learning the trade...


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## chickensnake (Dec 21, 2011)

Or could be a slug haha


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## SteveNT (Dec 21, 2011)

Dont think so cobber, very deliberate, no nearby experiments. Whoever painted that did so at someone else's expense I reckon.

I recommend having a go at Josephine Floods' books, dated admittedly but the source info is 2-5 generations old.


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## waruikazi (Dec 21, 2011)

This book? Amazon.com: The Archaeology of the Dreamtime: Story of Prehistoric Australia and Her People (9780732225445): Josephine Flood: Books

I'll order it now if you recon it's worth a gander.



SteveNT said:


> Dont think so cobber, very deliberate, no nearby experiments. Whoever painted that did so at someone else's expense I reckon.
> 
> I recommend having a go at Josephine Floods' books, dated admittedly but the source info is 2-5 generations old.



Or is it this one?http://www.amazon.com/Rock-Art-Drea...=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324463374&sr=1-5


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## SteveNT (Dec 21, 2011)

Archaeology of the Dreamtime and Rock Art of the Dreamtime I think.

Long and arduous reads at times but good information. I used both books for years and found them really useful. It's all whitefella science but well reseached and I have posed some of her propositions to senior countrymen with interesting results.

And this is going to be another Long Wet.


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## discountreptile (Dec 21, 2011)

Here's one for all the optimists which i would like to be one,

It would be fair to say that they are extinct from tasmania. The problem was not only man with a bounty on them but mans best friend with distemper, they would not survive the disease and be inbred too much they would be weak and die off. The problem with tasmania is the tassi devil, if there was a carcuss somewhere then it would get eaten bones and all over night.

The mainland, they were extinct from the mainland long before tasmania, not so much due to man but due to the native dog, the dingo, you can see that they would make a kill and a pack of dingos would muscle on in.

The only hope i would have for the thylacene would be Irian Jaya/ Papua New Guinea. When the land bridge was there some 50,000 years ago the were all through this area. The

There would be enough food for them and no natural preditors.I agree thinking it would take millions of dollars to find one but where do you start.I suppose us humans will just wait for one to walk into a village or town somewhere and hope that someone has a camera.


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## waruikazi (Dec 21, 2011)

Papua is in a similar boat to us in reguards to wild dogs and dingoes. Dingo - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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## SteveNT (Dec 21, 2011)

Natural predators = us mob.

natural competitors = canis familiaris (4k years at best.) 

Tiger ate the meat, Devil ate the skin and bones. Both solitary except for breeding.

Then canis familiaris arrives= social, numerous and cunning (and they leave nothing). Their group hunting skills ejected the tigers and the Devils from the mainland and only Bass Strait saved the mob on Tassie. 

Such is life.


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## AllThingsReptile (Dec 21, 2011)

with this Painting thing, theres actually a confirmed Tasmanian Tiger painting on Mt Pilot Vic., and no this is no tourist bull, i have been up there many many times (herping  ) and we have got multiple elders saying that it is infact a real painting


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## SteveNT (Dec 21, 2011)

lizardboii said:


> with this Painting thing, theres actually a confirmed Tasmanian Tiger painting on Mt Pilot Vic., and no this is no tourist bull, i have been up there many many times (herping  ) and we have got multiple elders saying that it is infact a real painting



No doubt here, as spaken, dogs have arrived comparitively recently Tigers & Devils were common on the mainland until then.

Life is tough when you're up against a gang,


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## Tassie97 (Jan 16, 2012)

[video=youtube;lpV95NYRTqA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&amp;v=lpV95NYRTqA[/video]

Tasmanian adventuring pair, The Tassie Boys, believe they have stumbled upon a Thylacine skull on the bank of creek in a remote area of Northern Tasmania.''We believe we have a story here that people want to hear,'' Levi Triffitt said.''We went trail riding last week were going to take some footage for our next film and we stumbled accross a skull in the form of a Thylacine.''We don't know exactly what is is yet but it is very similar to real skulls.The pair said they hahdn't had it professionally checked yet but wanted to go to the media first.''Everybody wants to believe they are still alive so even a chance makes a great story and there is a good chance it could be.'​


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## Dark_Morelia (Jan 16, 2012)

Sorry to burst any bubbles, but it's a large dog skull.


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## Tassie97 (Jan 16, 2012)

Dark_Morelia said:


> Sorry to burst any bubbles, but it's a large dog skull.


hmm yer i just googled dog skull  
oh well we can hope


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## Sdaji (Jan 18, 2012)

JasonL said:


> ...two in the bush is worth 1000,000 in the hand.



Arguably, perhaps, but any number in the hand is worth far more than zero in the bush.

As for thylacines, it's pretty obvious they are extinct, and I hope the myth that it was due to hunting has been dropped. It was quite clearly due to disease.


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## jack (Jan 18, 2012)

just like it was disease that killed the first folks down there...


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## waruikazi (Jan 18, 2012)

jack said:


> just like it was disease that killed the first folks down there...



Now that is an even bigger myth than that of the thylacines dieing from over hunting! But should probably be left for an anthropology rather than herpetology forum.


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## Surroundx (Feb 24, 2012)

Last year (7th of September, 2011) was the 75th anniversary of the death of the last known Thylacine at Hobart Zoo, erroneously known as "Benjamin". A perfect example of convergent evolution now lost forever (unless cloning can revive it, which is seeming more unlikely as time passes). Figures for the "second" official bounty (simply a higher price paid per individual) are as follows:

1888-81
1889-113
1890-128
1891-90
1892-112
1893-107
1894-105
1895-109
1896-121
1897-120
1898-108
1899-143
1900-153
1901-151
1902-119
1903-96
1904-98
1905-111
1906-58
1907-42
1908-17
1909-2


*Total:* 2184 animals (2040 adults and 144 juveniles)


The bounty actually ran until 1912, but no animals were handed in to collect on their pelts. This is almost certainly due to the fact that live animals commanded much higher prices. So whether the dramatic decrease in the number of pelts being handed in starting in 1906, was due to increasing scarcity of the species, or a much greater demand for live specimens, remains somewhat unsolved.


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