#thylacinus cynocephalus

[moonlight-wolf-archive]

Colorized Thylacines pt. 3

[olessan]

The central continent of my worldbuilding world is dominated by marsupials and monotremes, and birds. There are several species of thylacine, and one — which is essentially our Thylacinus cynocephalus — is domesticated.

They are a recent domestication, with about 250 generations having passed. Compared to the wild ancestors, they have similar builds, but with more colours, variation in size, and longer lifespans (12-20 years). They have lost their natural reclusive nature and though shy, are friendly and inquisitive and trainable to a point. Most prefer to be solitary or tolerate the presence of 1-2 others, though get along well with other calm-tempered species. Their prey drive is greatly reduced but many suffer anxiety in loud or busy environments.

Lil update: If you would like fancy thylacines to put places, I turned this into a poster/prints, and there's also a sticker <3

[joeycbang]

tattoo-esque thylacine

[aquarellchill]

Thylacine portrait on black paper

I love how they are marsupial alternative to a dog, they look familiar yet alien/different to what we're used to see.

Prints available on my Redbubble

(or DM me if you want the original)

[saritapaleo]

Patreon request for @/brittoniawhite (Instagram handle) - Thylacinus cynocephalus. I’ve drawn this guy already, but here’s a new pose AND a size chart, which the previous post didn’t have.

Known by several common names: the Tasmanian Tiger, Tasmanian Wolf, or simply the Thylacine, Thylacinus cynocephalus was neither canine nor feline, but instead a large carnivorous marsupial.

Being a marsupial, it had a pouch. Though it was unique in that both females and males had pouches: the males’ were used to protect their reproductive organs. Thylacine life expectancy was estimated to be between 5 and 7 years, though some captive specimens lived to 9 years. They were shy and nocturnal carnivores, likely eating other marsupials such as kangaroos, wallabies, wombats, and possums, as well as other small animals and birds, such as the similarly extinct Tasmanian Emu. However, it is a matter of dispute whether the thylacine would have been able to take on prey items as large or larger than itself. It is unknown whether they hunted alone or in small family groups, though captive thylacines did get along with each other.

Thylacinus cynocephalus was the last of the Thylacinids, a family of Dasyuromorph marsupials. It lived from the Pleistocene to the Holocene in Australia and New Guinea, driven to extinction in the 1930s by hunting, human encroachment, disease, and feral dogs. The thylacine was already extinct on the Australian mainland and New Guinea by the time British settlers arrived, with the island of Tasmania being its last stronghold. Settlers feared the marsupial would attack them and their livestock, demonizing it as a “blood drinker”, and bounties were put in place that drove the thylacine to be overhunted. As they became rarer, there was a push to capture thylacines and keep them alive in captivity, but unfortunately it was too little, too late. Conservation and animal welfare was not at the level it is today, not much was known about their behavior in the wild, and there was only one successful birth in captivity. Studies show that with continued successful breeding, a campaign to change public perception, and protections put into place much earlier, the thylacine could have been saved. But the last captive thylacine died in 1936, and official protection was not put in place until that year, 59 days before his death. Sightings continued into the 1980s, and even today some claim to see them, but all of these sightings are unconfirmed and unlikely. As are all the other animals on this account, the thylacine is definitively extinct.

Today, carnivores such as wolves and coyotes are demonized in the same way the thylacine was, and there are some who wish to also wipe them out entirely, even having succeeded in many places. While some of the thylacine’s closest relatives, like the Numbat and Tasmanian Devil, survived the European persecution which killed off the thylacines, they are still endangered today due to introduced predators and disease. Instead of continuing to search for, or trying to resurrect the lost thylacine, perhaps it is best we channel that attention, love, and regret on the species we still have. Extinction is forever, and it is easier to save those who are still alive.

This art may be used for educational purposes, with credit, but please contact me first for permission before using my art. I would like to know where and how it is being used. If you don’t have something to add that was not already addressed in this caption, please do not repost this art. Thank you!

[printondemandart]

The Thylacine by Joseph Wolf Postcard

Animal Illustration: Designs & Collections on Zazzle

[pampinoscaryt2]

Thylacinus cynocephalus

[gergthecat]

lol sorry

sorry to my mutuals for all the thylacine content; I'm secretly a cryptozoologist at heart

[podartists]

The Thylacine (Thylacinus cynocephalus) | Joseph Wolf | Zoological sketches v.1 (1861) | Biodiversity Heritage Library | Flickr | Public domain

[moonlight-wolf-archive]

A woman looks into a diorama of three Thylacines, date and location unknown. [ x ]

[moonlight-wolf-archive]

-Top pictured is one of the Burrell photographs. Which were edited to be close ups to depict a 'thylacine in the wild' later debunked to be a captive thylacine.

-Middle pictured is the Wilfred batty thylacine which is the last recorded thylacine shot in the wild.

-Bottom pictured is the Beaumaris zoo family group.

[olessan]

re: today's thylacine hoax

[joeycbang]

I took a four week intensive on Scientific Illustration over the summer, and these are what I consider my best work. It was a very interesting experience and I don't think I've learned so much in that short of a period before.

Specimens:

Thylacine Thylacinus cynocephalus: Copy of WAM 13.2.16

Red Kangaroo Osphranter rufus: FUR 272

Euowenia grata: FU 2671

References:

Camens, A. and Wells, R. (2009) ‘Diprotodontid footprints from the Pliocene of Central Australia’, Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 29(3), pp. 863–869. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1671/039.029.0316.

Camens, A.B. and Wells, R.T. (2010) ‘Palaeobiology of Euowenia grata (Marsupialia: Diprotodontinae) and its Presence in Northern South Australia’, Journal of Mammalian Evolution, 17(1), pp. 3–19. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10914-009-9121-2.

[moonlight-wolf-archive]

This is my favorite photo of them

three female thylacine one with a amputation forefoot

[amnhnyc]

On this day in 1936, the last known thylacine (Thylacinus cynocephalus) died at the Hobart Zoo in Tasmania. The animal’s passing marked the extinction of its species. Also known as the “Tasmanian wolf,” the thylacine was Australia’s largest marsupial predator. It sported a dog-like form, with distinctive stripes, and a jaw that could open up to 80 degrees—one of the largest gapes of any mammal.

The thylacine fed primarily on small mammals and birds. Nocturnal and shy, it was seldom seen by humans. However, beginning in the 19th century, settlers believed the animals threatened their livestock and, spurred on by a bounty offered by the government, hunted them relentlessly. Attempts at protecting the species in the wild came too late: Despite numerous unconfirmed reports of sightings in recent decades, no definitive sightings have occurred since the 1930s.

[palaeoplushies]

I've restocked Thylacines

I'm thinking of making them little "Emotional Support Thylacine" vests for them and sending them out as a little free bonus for this batch cuz I feel like folks might need that right now...

This is just concept art but I think I know what I'm doing tomorrow...

Thylacines available over here: https://www.palaeoplushies.com/shop/thylacine-thylacinus-cynocephalus-h58t4

Note: If people like the jacket idea, all orders placed before I make them will also come with a jacket. Subsequent orders will also have jackets for this batch. I probably won't make them again in future unless people REALLY like them. The jacket design is subject to change from the photo!