Benjamin, the last Tasmanian Tiger, at Beaumaris Zoo in 1933.

HELLO ZOO GOERS!!! I HOPE YOU ARE ENJOYING THE ANIMALS!!! HAVE A NICE DAY!!!

The Tasmanian tiger (aka Thylacine/ aka Tasmanian wolf) was the largest known carnivorous marsupial of modern times.

[ There have been sightings of Thylacines after the death of the last one in captivity. I’ve been upset about their demise since I was a small child. I hope there are some still alive roaming freely on their native land. I also mourn the loss of the passenger pigeon and hope that a few survive. It’s hard to believe that all of them are gone. Their flocks used to be so huge that it could take a full day or more for the flock to pass overhead. 😦 ]

They’ve been able to successfully complete sequences of mitochondrial thylacine genome. It’s not enough for cloning (you need nuclear DNA, mitochondrial isn’t enough) but it’s a step in the “right” direction.

Okay scientists. I am willing to pay up to $1000 for a pet Thylacine! Get to work!

Video of Benjamin (1933):

(Update: Is the Tasmanian Tiger Alive?)