Tasmanian tiger sightings have prompted a Queensland search, as scientists hope to make new discoveries pertaining to the rare species.
The Tasmanian tiger was reportedly spotted in the northern part of Queensland, despite being thought to have gone extinct in its native land of Australia some 2,000 years ago, according to The Guardian.
It’s been a longtime belief that the last thylacine died at a zoo in Hobart more than 80 years ago.
However, potential sightings of the dog-like animal have caught the attention of a group of scientists at James Cook University.
Bill Laurence, a professor at James Cook University, said he spoke with two people who said they saw what looked like thylacines in Cape York Peninsula, The Guardian reported.
“In one case four animals were observed at close range – about 20 feet away – with a spotlight,” Laurence said.
“What really stood out to me was that it wasn’t just a brief sighting in the [car] headlights, he actually said that he saw the animals multiple times in one night,” said Dr. Sandra Abell, who’s working beside Laurence on this issue, according to Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Scientists from the university are now putting cameras up across Cape York Peninsula to monitor areas where the creatures could be wandering, according to RT.
This comes after the Thylacine Awareness Group of Australia released footage last year from 2008 that appeared to show an alleged Tasmanian tiger in the wilds of southern Victoria, RT noted.
It is possible for a species to be rediscovered, which was the case last month when endangered northern bettongs were found in north Queensland, where they were widely thought to have died out years ago, ABC noted.
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