Thylacine

Fact file

Name: Thylacine [thi-lah-seen]
Status: Extinct

Habitat: Woodland and forest in Tasmania.

Reasons for extinction: Thylacines were never common in Tasmania. Nevertheless, they were often blamed by farmers in the 19th century for killing their sheep. Rewards were offered to people for killing thylacines, but even then, their numbers seemed to stay fairly constant.

It wasn't until the early 20^th century that thylacines suddenly became extremely rare. Some scientists think that they were affected by a disease epidemic which also killed many Tasmanian devils. The last known thylacine died in a zoo in Hobart in 1936, and was later given the name of 'Benjamin'.
But the thylacine still remains a mystery. There have been hundreds of sighting of thylacines throughout the 20^th century, and many people think that a few might still survive in remote areas of Tasmania today.

Although the thylacine is extinct, it is not like the dodo - there are quite a few thylacine specimens in museums around the world.

This specimen is a mounted skin - it has been preserved and stuffed by a taxidermist. Although this specimen gives us a good idea what the thylacine looked like, the Museum has other types of specimens as well. Bones, teeth and unmounted skins all tell us different things about the thylacine.

The Museum has several thylacine specimens. This is another view of the mounted skin - it has been preserved and stuffed by a taxidermist so it could go on display.

If you compare this photograph to the other view of the same specimen you can see some differences. If you look carefully, you can see that the stripes on this side of the animal are darker than on the other side. Why do think this might be? (Hint: the specimen was on display in the same position for a very long time.)

The Museum has several thylacine specimens. This is a skin - it has been preserved so it doesn't decay, but has not been stuffed like the mounted skin has.

Most animal skins in the Museum are kept in this way - the skins do not get damaged and they are kept away from the light so they do not fade. It also saves space - the Museum has limited space, and storage is very important. Skins are only mounted when they are to go on display.

Not all animal specimens in the Museum are stuffed skins. There are lots of skeletons, individual bones and teeth too. This is the lower jaw of the thylacine.

These specimens tell us a lot about how the animal lived, and what it looked like. If there are enough specimens of the same animal in museums around the world, scientists can study these bones, and can find out a lot about why these animals became extinct.

Bones and teeth can tell us a lot about what an extinct animal looked like, but they may also be a source of genetic material too.

Scientists can try and extract DNA from these specimens. They can work out how closely related an animal like the thylacine was to other animals living today. It has even been suggested that scientists may be able to clone the thylacine - but nobody is sure if this will ever be possible.

Not all animal specimens in the Museum are stuffed skins. There are lots of skeletons, individual bones and teeth too. These are the foot bones of the thylacine.

These specimens tell us a lot about how the animal lived, and what it looked like. If there are enough specimens of the same animal in museums around the world, scientists can study these bones, and can find out a lot about why these animals became extinct.

Tasmania is an island off the south east coast of Australia. It is the smallest state in Australia and much of it is covered by thick woodlands and forest. Hobart is the capital city of Tasmania.

The thylacine is an important symbol in Tasmania, and thylacines are featured on the Tasmanian coat of arms.

Thylacine

Fact file

See our collections of images and photographs tracing the history of the thylacine