Wednesday, September 07, 2016

Farewell to the thylacine

The Earth's largest modern marsupial predator was declared extinct 80 years ago today. I'm quite certain it lingered a couple more decades: some good sightings indicate it may have lingered into the 1980s or even the 1990s.  I wrote in both my books that I hoped the animal survived still, and there are a few indications it might somehow have a surviving population on the Australian mainland even if the Tasmanian animals were all gone..  But on balance, I don't have much hope.


3 comments:

Laurence Clark Crossen said...

I don't think you are up to date on this. The evidence and arguments keep coming in stronger. There is the possibility it survives on New Guinea. I am very confident it still survives.

Laurence Clark Crossen said...

http://karlshuker.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-new-guinea-thylacine-crying-wolf-in.html

Matt Bille said...

Hadn't thought about New Guinea lately - I thought those sightings had faded away in the last few years.