Researchers from James Cook University have installed camera traps in the Australian Cape York Peninsula with the hope of finding marsupial wolves, the last of which died 80 years ago. This is reported by Live Science.
The marsupial (Tasmanian) wolf is a marsupial mammal that lived in Australia. This wolf looked like a dog, but had an unusual color: its gray-yellow-brown back was covered with dark brown transverse stripes running from the shoulders to the base of the tail.
The Tasmanian wolf was nocturnal, but sometimes it was spotted basking in the sun. The animals had a solitary lifestyle, but for hunting they could join in pairs or small groups.
The last representative of this species died in 1936 at the zoo in the Australian city of Hobart. Since 1986, marsupial wolves have been officially considered extinct. But lately, there have been reports from Australian residents that they have spotted striped wolves on country roads and even near their homes. True, eyewitnesses cannot confirm their words with photographs or video recordings.
Many reports of marsupial wolves have come from residents of Cape York Peninsula, located in northern Queensland. In one of the cases, a tourist noticed four animals at a distance of six meters from him, and they were hit by the light from car headlights. The eyewitness description of the animals definitely matched the description of the Tasmanian wolves.
Researchers have set up camera traps across the peninsula. The camera trap is a rubberized waterproof camera designed for shooting (photo and video) outdoors without direct human control.
Whether the cameras detect marsupial wolves or not, this study will help gather important data on the animals that live on the Cape York Peninsula. Moreover, the population of wild animals there has been declining in recent years.