The Tasmanian Tiger Sightings
The last known Tasmanian tiger died in a zoo in 1936. People have been reporting them in the bush ever since.
What was reported
The thylacine, or Tasmanian tiger, was a striped, dog-like marsupial. Hunted heavily, it became rare, and the last known animal died at Hobart's Beaumaris Zoo on 7 September 1936. It was later declared extinct.
Since then, people in Tasmania and on mainland Australia have reported hundreds of sightings of striped, dog-like animals. Searches with camera traps have not found one.
Explanations offered
Most sightings are thought to be dogs, foxes or other animals seen briefly. A 2023 study of the sighting records suggested the species may have survived in remote Tasmania for decades after 1936, possibly into the 1980s or later. Most scientists think it is now gone, but searches continue.
- When
- Since 1936
- Where
- Tasmania, Australia
- Witnesses
- Hundreds of people
- Status
- Unconfirmed
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.