Supposed thylacine footage from 1990's

[Chlidonias]

Devils will enter fox dens and eat the pups. It is a fairly reasonable assumption that this is the reason the numerous attempts to introduce foxes dating back to early settlement days have failed, despite Tasmania seemingly presenting ideal fox habitat. The fear currently is that with devil numbers at an all time low, and absent from a large portion of the country, there is an opportunity for foxes to become established.

yes indeed, I was being flippant sorry. But shouldn't that read something more like "Devils may enter fox dens and eat the pups", given that I don't suppose there's any direct evidence that they do in fact enter fox dens and eat the pups?

Pedantry aside, it would be a most terrible thing if foxes did become widely and permanently established in Tasmania

 

[Jarkari]

Devils will enter fox dens and eat the pups. It is a fairly reasonable assumption that this is the reason the numerous attempts to introduce foxes dating back to early settlement days have failed, despite Tasmania seemingly presenting ideal fox habitat. The fear currently is that with devil numbers at an all time low, and absent from a large portion of the country, there is an opportunity for foxes to become established.

Devils being carrian eaters are at threat from foxes, more foxes mean less available food for the devils as they will eat the dead stuff to, this will (if not already) force more and more devils together at feeds, which will increase the rate of decline as more and more devils will get DFTD.

 

[Pertinax]

Pedantry aside, it would be a most terrible thing if foxes did become widely and permanently established in Tasmania

If they are already there and there is no effective way of fully eradicating(not just controlling them) then I guess its only a matter of time?

Going back to the filmed videos of 'Thylacines', I've yet to see one which really gives any credibility to the 'Thylacine survives' theory. Most of them appear to be mange -ridden foxes.

 

[Steve Robinson]

Going back to the filmed videos of 'Thylacines', I've yet to see one which really gives any credibility to the 'Thylacine survives' theory. Most of them appear to be mange -ridden foxes.

That sums it up pretty well, Pertinax.

Many decades ago Sir Edward Hallstrom, from Taronga Park Zoo, offered a very large sum of money for a live thylacine. Despite a lot of effort at the time nobody even saw one, let alone captured one.

Since then, quite a number of more scientifically inspired endeavours have tried to photograph the animal without success.

I have some knowledge of the west coast of Tasmania and it is so rugged that one could never be 100% sure that thylacine do not still exist.

Realistically though, one would have to concede that the odds are against them.

 

[Pertinax]

I have some knowledge of the west coast of Tasmania and it is so rugged that one could never be 100% sure that thylacine do not still exist.

Realistically though, one would have to concede that the odds are against them.

I've been to Tassie on three seperate occassions. Have had a pretty good look around the Island and visited most areas except the very inhospitable West Coast, and you are right, although its not prime Thylacine country you can never say there aren't still some there. Also talked to Eric Guiler, and Stephen Smith who between them probably organised the most detailed and extensive searches/surveys of the many that have been undertaken. Also to the daughter(Miss Reid?) of the Hobart Zoo curator who remembered them from when she was a girl (nice old lady but she had been interviewed so many times about this she had an almost 'set' repertoire on the subject)

I've seen the farm at Mawbanna where the (supposedly) last wild Thylacine was shot in 1930, though I'm of the opinion they probably lingered on longer than that and I think some of the later sightings by the 'oldtime' bushmen who were familiar with the animals were genuine, certainly through the 1940's perhaps even up to the 1950's?

After that, who knows? My only hope for continued existence rests on the fact that a few other mainland Australian marsupials previously thought extinct have been rediscovered after many years. The difference being no one was out activly searching for them!

 

[Kifaru Bwana]

I would say that Pertinax's essay is pretty much spot on. Just never say never for the West country. But alas, even I, remain sceptical (which is a healthy scientific approach).

Point of interest: did wildlife biologists ever used modern-age camera trapping on the West coastline?

 

[Pertinax]

Point of interest: did wildlife biologists ever used modern-age camera trapping on the West coastline?

I can't answer that but maybe one of our Australian/NZ colleagues can. I would think the impenetrable nature of that area would be a barrier to cameratrap work though.
I also think that if a 'pool' of Thylacines was still living there that there it would have by now produced some reports/evidence of animals that had slowly spread back into the neighbouring, less inaccessible areas.