" It wasn't a dog. and it was to big to be a cat ". There have been lots of reported sightings of the fabled Tasmanian Tiger on the rambling coast of South Gippsland, most recently right here in Inverloch just off of Ullathornes Road and reported in The Great Southern Star. The last Tasmanian Tiger or Thylacine in capivity died in the Hobart Zoo in 1936, but sightings of the animal have been prevalent ever since, particularly along the Gippsland coast where it is believed a breeding pair of Tasmanian tigers were released at Wilsons Promontory just after WW1.
A recent Tasmanian tiger sighting was reported in South Gippsland recently. Venus Bay Caravan Park owner Tony Holgate came across a tiger at the park in December, and Barrie Murphy reported a sighting at Inverloch. The Inverloch resident said he was positive he caught a glimpse of the nocturnal marsupial and added jokingly he had just one glass of wine for the whole night.
“At about 10.30pm, I was driving along Ullathorne Road when it crossed the road in front of me,” he said. “First of all, I thought it was a fox or a cat, but as it moved off the bitumen on to the green verge, I realised it was dog sized, about the same as an Alsatian.” Mr Murphy said as he got closer to the animal, its tail captured his attention. “It was the long, straight tail, which could have been a metre long. It was straight out, white and strong looking,” he said. Because he was in his car, Mr Murphy was unable to see the creature’s head, but he did recognise one of the Tasmanian tiger’s most distinctive traits. “The thing that really made me twig was, as I drove past it, I saw the stripes down its side and onto its flank,” he said. “I thought to myself, I have seen something exceptional here, so I turned around and went back, but it had disappeared.” Mr Murphy said in the past, he has heard two accounts of Tasmanian tiger sightings, both from reliable sources. “After seeing one myself, I thought I would report it so other people can keep a lookout,” he said. Read the full article in The Great Southern Star HERE MURRAY MCALLISTER'S SEARCH FOR THE TASSIE TIGER
The possible continued existence of a thylacine population, particularly in South-Eastern Victoria, is clearly and graphically displayed in Murray's well documented website. Murray McAllister has been working for several years now in the course of thylacine research, his enthusiasm, dedication and staunch determination in seeking to collect sound and conclusive evidence of thylacine activity throughout the Gippsland area of Victoria is commendable. Evidence would suggest that there is every possibility of conclusive proof eventually emerging that will, sooner or later put the issue beyond doubt that the thylacine or Tasmanian tiger has survived not only in Tasmania, but on mainland Australia as well. Thylacine researchers such as Murray McAllister are proving invaluable in their on-going research towards achieving this.
MAKING HEADLINES AROUND THE WORLD
Interestingly in 2015, Dr Seymour Walbert & Professor Julia Svenmaker from the University of Melbourne, successfully bought back to life a genetic fragment of the extinct Tasmanian tiger by inserting part of a gene involved in bone growth into the Tasmanian devil a genetically close relative!
" NO ONE HAS DONE THIS IN A LIVING ORGANISM BEFORE " SAID DR. WALBERT
Despite the latest results, Professor Svenmaker admits it is “highly unlikely” that the entire animal can be resurrected in this way. “Even though this is a successful technological breakthrough, there may be 20 years separating us from being able to reproduce a living species of the extinct animal”, claims the specialist. “But this is the closest we’ve ever been to bringing back strands of DNA into a living fetus, which is extremely encouraging for the future”.
CLONING THE TASMANIAN TIGERAMAZING PHOTOGRAPHS OF WHAT THE THYLACINE COULD LOOK LIKE IN THE WILD BY JOSEPH MCGLENNON FROM HIS " THYLACINES" SERIESBEHIND THE SCENES WITH PHOTOGRAPHER JOSEPH MCGLENNON
An in depth behind the scenes glimpse of the passion and dedication that went into the production of "Thylacines". McGlennon won the 2015 William and Winifried Bowness Photography Prize for Florilegium #1, his picture of two parrots perched on tropical foliage, inspired by Joseph Banks’ botanical drawings.
The Thylacine is also the subject of the fantastic 2011 movie "The Hunter" starring Willem Dafoe. It's amazing to think that so many of these have been spotted in and near Inverloch. Have you glimpsed one?
MAKE THE SEA CHANGE TO INVERLOCH |
Photo used under Creative Commons from jikatu
