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Post by cantona on Sept 25, 2008 6:20:47 GMT 10
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Post by JeffJ on Sept 25, 2008 7:01:39 GMT 10
Interesting piece. I really doubt it was a thylacine. But who can say for sure. They mis-quoted Owen, who was talking about thylacoleo carnifex, not the thylacine. Jeff  |
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Post by lurcherman on Dec 25, 2009 21:07:47 GMT 10
Soon it will be the 200th anniversary of the demise of the Girt Dog. What if it WAS a Thylacine, and where did it come from. It weighed over fifty kgs (about a cwt) which might seem a bit on the large side for a Thylacine, but we only know of Thylacines from Tasmania.
As Paddle has shown there are references to Thylacines living on the mainland at the beginning of the nineteenth century, and the NSW colony was founded in 1788.
Island races tend to be smaller than their mainland cousins. Supposing the Girt Dog was a mainland Thylacine.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 26, 2009 3:35:28 GMT 10
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girt_dog_of_Ennerdale
" ... During one hunt, the pack had pursued the beast into a small wood and armed men and hounds surrounded the copse. Escape seemed impossible. However, the creature made a break for it and ran at one hunter by the name of Will Rothery.
Rothery, with a clear shot, lowered his musket, amazed at the size and strange appearance of the animal, and could only manage to shout “Skerse, what a dog!” as he moved to one side to let it pass. It is said Rothery was taunted about the day forever after. ... "That sounds a little like our good friend Denny's encounter with the Maryborough "Lion". 
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Post by dennisw on Dec 31, 2009 9:15:51 GMT 10
That sounds a little like our good friend Denny's encounter with the Maryborough "Lion".
Nothing like it, I was armed with an automatic rifle (still legal in those days) and the only reason I didn't blow it away was because it was so obviously marsupial and not at all like the big cat I thought I was about to shoot.
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Post by cantona on Jan 26, 2010 4:48:58 GMT 10
Soon it will be the 200th anniversary of the demise of the Girt Dog. What if it WAS a Thylacine, and where did it come from. It weighed over fifty kgs (about a cwt) which might seem a bit on the large side for a Thylacine, but we only know of Thylacines from Tasmania. As Paddle has shown there are references to Thylacines living on the mainland at the beginning of the nineteenth century, and the NSW colony was founded in 1788. Island races tend to be smaller than their mainland cousins. Supposing the Girt Dog was a mainland Thylacine. A wild idea that came to me was that could the mainland thylacines, or indeed the girt dog be an example of Thylacinus potens or similar subspecies. Has there ever been evidence that this animal or a related subspieces survived past the Miocene? |
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Post by lurcherman on Jan 28, 2010 8:04:47 GMT 10
Cantona wrote "Has there ever been evidence that this animal or a related subspieces survived past the Miocene?"
Good point but given the paucity of fossils the answer, beyond scientific assumptions, might be a long time coming.
There could possibly be other ways of finding out, the likes of Paddle and Col Bailey have shown the way. e.g. It has been suggested that the Phoenicians and the Portuguese got to Australia before Cook, perhaps the Portuguese in particular may have recorded observation of unusual fauna.
Furthermore when the British settled in Oz they developed two breeds of sighthound, the Kangaroo Dog and the Strathdoon Dingo Killer for exterminating unwanted 'pests', may be some of those early pest controllers left accounts of unusual animals they might have come across. If it was the end of the eighteenth century perhaps they didn't see mainland thylacines as being that unusual; there is mention in 'The Last Tasmanian Tiger' of a thylacine bounty on the mainland.
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Thylacoleo Gal
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Post by Thylacoleo Gal on Jan 28, 2010 9:06:48 GMT 10
Cantona wrote "Has there ever been evidence that this animal or a related subspieces survived past the Miocene?"Good point but given the paucity of fossils the answer, beyond scientific assumptions, might be a long time coming. There could possibly be other ways of finding out, the likes of Paddle and Col Bailey have shown the way. e.g. It has been suggested that the Phoenicians and the Portuguese got to Australia before Cook, perhaps the Portuguese in particular may have recorded observation of unusual fauna. Furthermore when the British settled in Oz they developed two breeds of sighthound, the Kangaroo Dog and the Strathdoon Dingo Killer for exterminating unwanted 'pests', may be some of those early pest controllers left accounts of unusual animals they might have come across. If it was the end of the eighteenth century perhaps they didn't see mainland thylacines as being that unusual; there is mention in 'The Last Tasmanian Tiger' of a thylacine bounty on the mainland. I agree: research into correspondence of the first settlers might be seriously worthwhile and, AFAIK, it's never been thoroughly done with a focus on relict fauna. Except by Paddle, really. A project that's been on Thylacoleo's "books" for years is/was to research the papers and letters of pioneer families of southern Australia where remnant populations of Pleistocene fauna may have hung on. Apparently many wives of pioneer settlers made it their business to befriend the aboriginals and to record their language, customs and beliefs. Including their knowledge of herbs and wildlife. Margaret Loch Kiddle in her epic work, Men of Yesterday researched much of this --> adbonline.anu.edu.au/biogs/A150019b.htmBut her book is mainly about the life and times of Niel Black, the pioneer pastoralist of Victoria's Western district --> adbonline.anu.edu.au/biogs/A030163b.htmApparently, however, there are treasure troves of letters & diaries of pioneers' wives that can be accessed & read, if one has the time.  That would be the way to go v/v "leads" of this sort: Kiddle's Men of Yesterday would be the starting point, for its sources. But I don't think we're going to start any project like that any time soon, so maybe it's an idea someone else could take up. D. |
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Post by dennisw on Jan 28, 2010 22:17:21 GMT 10
In my collection I have a copy of a reportt from Ballarat Courier of the 1890s following the sighting of a "panther". The report says these animals "roar like a lion" and have been seen in many areas. In the 1800s many districts conducted "panther hunts" with little success despite many sightings, this supports my theory that the animals are nocturnal and usually only seen at dawn or dusk.
Panther hunts were also conducted at Tallarook in the 1920s & 1930s following a number of sightings, but the forests in the area were heavily harvested at the time disturbing their habitat. I came very close to obtaining a photograph there one night when a "panther" took a sheep, but I had made the mistake of taking my wife and daughter to check on where killings had been occurring. They jumped back in the car and locked the doors at the sight of the thing leaving me outside with a camera and no light.
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Post by lurcherman on Jan 29, 2010 7:59:53 GMT 10
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Post by lurcherman on Feb 3, 2010 7:13:40 GMT 10
France had a mystery animal much like the Girt Dog, except that it/they attacked and ate people. Known 'affectionately' as La Bette by the French, it/they ravaged an area of over seven thousand square kilometres obliging the French government to put considerable time and effort into their capture. As usual in this kind of story supernatural tales of vampirism and lycanthropy abound. www.newanimal.org/beastgev.htm |
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Post by Isengard on Feb 3, 2010 9:50:00 GMT 10
I assume you are talking about the Beast of the Gevaudan? This is a weird one, but surely not a thylacine? It was described as a very large, reddish wolf by eyewitnesses, sometimes bizarrely with hooves? It was not striped. All-in-all a very strnage story as it was seemingly able to inflict devastating injuries, far more deadly than those of any known wolf. I would guess that it was a wolf and that the reports were wildly overexaggerated. Otherwise it had to have been a big cat, hyena or other very powerful predator with massive bite pressure. Spawned the outstanding film Brotherhood of the Wolf with Vincent Cassel. The French is relatively easy to follow and it's a really well-made and entertaining film, although almost royalist in its tone, strange for the French. France had a mystery animal much like the Girt Dog, except that it/they attacked and ate people. Known 'affectionately' as La Bette by the French, it/they ravaged an area of over seven thousand square kilometres obliging the French government to put considerable time and effort into their capture. As usual in this kind of story supernatural tales of vampirism and lycanthropy abound. www.newanimal.org/beastgev.htm |
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Post by lurcherman on Feb 3, 2010 17:13:20 GMT 10
Yes, The Beast of Gevaudan; definitely not a Thylacine, I would say. I should also have mentioned in the post that all attempts at capture failed. Probably not even suitable for this site as it only tends to deal with Australian cryptids, I only posted the link becuase it mentions the fear of vampirism which is interesting as this sort of accusation was levelled at the Thylacine, the Girt Dog and the Falklands wolf.
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Post by Surroundx on Oct 7, 2018 23:01:45 GMT 10
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Post by johannes on Oct 8, 2018 19:59:01 GMT 10
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Post by jorgs01 on Oct 10, 2018 16:15:55 GMT 10
Couple of links to the Fortean times forum regarding the Girt dog and the beast of Gevaudan. Seem to recal reading somewhere that the beast was a hyena and the man who eventually shot it was the one who originally kept it in his menagerie until it escaped and began killing people. Strangely enough once it was dead he swore that he knew nothing about that, (as you would).
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Post by johannes on Oct 11, 2018 22:49:05 GMT 10
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Post by Surroundx on Oct 12, 2018 21:20:05 GMT 10
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Post by lurcherman on Oct 31, 2018 6:17:26 GMT 10
Brindled lurchers are common but thylacines were striped over their rear end. Striped, no brindling. |
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Post by lurcherman on May 24, 2021 6:51:28 GMT 10
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Post by Ian Thomas on May 24, 2021 18:36:08 GMT 10
1840? Sounds like a cold case if ever there was one!  |
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Post by johannes on May 30, 2021 3:23:17 GMT 10
I did a quick internet research on the beast of county Cavan - another canid-like, or at least cursorial cryptid - and all the search engines gave me was "Perverted priest back on the streets".
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Post by Ian Thomas on Jun 7, 2021 9:53:25 GMT 10
😁👍
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Post by vincent on Jun 8, 2021 4:18:31 GMT 10
ROFL!  Seems appropriate for these times. |
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That would be the way to go v/v "leads" of this sort: Kiddle's Men of Yesterday would be the starting point, for its sources. But I don't think we're going to start any project like that any time soon, 
