Which extinct marsupial is also known as the Tasmanian wolf?

The extinct marsupial also known as the Tasmanian wolf is the thylacine. Its scientific name was Thylacinus cynocephalus, and it was the only recent species in the family Thylacinidae.

The nickname came from its dog- or wolf-like body shape and predatory appearance. It was not a true canine: like kangaroos and koalas, it was a marsupial. Thylacines also had dark stripes across the back and rump, which earned them the better-known nickname “Tasmanian tiger.”

The species once lived across mainland Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea, but it disappeared from the mainland thousands of years ago. European settlement brought hunting, habitat pressure, competition from introduced animals, and other threats. The last known captive animal died at Hobart Zoo in 1936.

A common mix-up is confusing the thylacine with the Tasmanian devil. Both are carnivorous marsupials from Tasmania, but they belong to different genera, and the thylacine was much larger and more wolf-like in build.