Scientists have discovered three new species of thylacine, offering a glimpse into the evolutionary history of the iconic Tasmanian tiger.
The fossils, unearthed in the Riversleigh World Heritage Area in north-western Queensland, have been dated back to the late Oligocene epoch, around 23-25 million years ago.
The new species, named Badjcinus timfaulkneri, Nimbacinus peterbridgei and Ngamalacinus nigelmarveni, are the oldest members of the thylacine family yet discovered.
The largest of the three, Badjcinus timfaulkneri, weighed between 7 and 11 kilograms, making it significantly larger than its previously known relative, Badjcinus turnbulli.
Lead researcher Tim Churchill, a PhD student at UNSW, said the discovery of Badjcinus timfaulkneri provides valuable insights into the ancestry of the Tasmanian tiger.
“Up until now, the much smaller Badjcinus turnbulli, which weighed around 2.7kg, was the only other late Oligocene thylacinid known,” he said.
“The teeth, including the lower jaw and isolated first molar, were found at Hiatus Site at Riversleigh, which is even older than White Hunter Site where Badjcinus turnbulli was previously found.”
“This makes Badjcinus timfaulkneri the oldest undoubted thylacine discovered so far.”
The smallest of the three, Ngamalacinus nigelmarveni, weighed around 5.1 kilograms and was roughly the size of a red fox.
“All but one of these lineages, the one that led to the modern thylacine, became extinct by 8 million years ago,” Churchill said.
“That lineage ended with the death of Benjamin, the last Tasmanian tiger in Hobart’s Beaumaris Zoo on September 7, 1936.”
