#february2017

When a word or phrase is in italics, it indicates when Anti specifically spoke.

Lines with [?] by them means that it’s unclear if he used an Anti voice.

ゆん

久びさナルト

Scientific Name: Thylacinus cynocephalus Common Name: Thylacine (also Tasmanian tiger) Diet: Small mammals. We feed them rabbits (invasive ones if possible - we have connections) Projected Natural Lifespan: 7-12 years Length: 1.5-1.8 m (5-6 feet) Weight: 20-30 kg (40-70 lbs) Natural Habitat: Tasmania, 4 mya-1936 Exhibit: Not on exhibit

About The thylacine is a superficially doglike marsupial related to quolls and Tasmanian devils. The term “Tasmanian tiger” comes from the dark striping they have on the back, rump and tail. Being marsupials, they have a pouch, which is rear-facing unlike many other marsupials. Though physically doglike, their behavior is more catlike - they were sight and sound hunters, ambush predators of small mammals, similar to small felids.

At Huxley You may notice thylacines aren’t on exhibit yet! Our population is kept behind the scenes for now, in the beginning stages of training for a possible reintroduction to western Tasmania. We won’t rule out them appearing in a future exhibit though... Notable Behavior Our thylacines are highly social. Families always stick together, and even non-family members will hang around each other. After they leave the pouch thylacine young stay with their families until they’re close to adult size, and in one of our three captive families the offspring have stayed with the family well into adulthood. When separated, our thylacine families often whine to each other to make sure they’re okay. They nest during the day in nests of plant matter, and step about together at night. Though normally shy, they do open up to certain people they’re familiar with, i.e. the two main keepers.

Geneticist Notes Our geneticists consider it a pleasure to have worked with the University of Melbourne’s scientists to use DNA from thylacine skins, bones, and preserved joeys in our animals, with a mixture of tiger quoll and Tasmanian devil DNA to complete the genome.