Patra Caesar
23-03-2005, 13:52
For those of you who don't know what a Tasmanian tiger is; A Tasmanian Tiger is a striped carniverous marsupial (has a pouch, is livebearing and produces milk), sort of like a kangaroo/dog cross. It has been extinct since 1936 because it was hunted due to its stripes looking scary to the settlers. Now multi-millionare and media mogul Kerry Packer is offering $1.25 million for proof of a live one. He's not the first to offer an award to a finder, several others have been offered, but none so big. Either he is an idiot or this is a publicity stunt.
Edited for New Foxxinnia :)
$1.25m reward for 'extinct' tiger
By Sue Bailey
March 23, 2005
A $1.25 MILLION reward is being offered for a live Tasmanian tiger by a national magazine owned by Kerry Packer.
But the Tasmanian Government warned last night the thylacine was presumed extinct, and anyone considering taking up the bounty should not contravene state laws.
To mark its 125th year, The Bulletin is offering the reward for conclusive proof of a live, uninjured animal in the wild.
Editor-in-chief Garry Linnell said The Bulletin was prepared to solve one of Australia's most enduring mysteries.
He said in the past 70 years there had been more than 4000 reported sightings of the tiger.
"Yet not one solid shred of evidence - not a bone, a hair, much less a body - has ever been put forward to prove the thylacine is the greatest escape artist in the animal kingdom," Mr Linnell said.
"If the tiger has managed to cling to survival, proving its existence would be one of the greatest scientific stories of the century.
"A live thylacine would have many profound implications including forcing a rethink of our understanding of how endangered species can survive."
The last Tasmanian tiger died in captivity in Hobart's Beaumaris Zoo in 1936.
Environment Minister Judy Jackson said no permits would be issued to capture thylacines for any sort of bounty.
"Although the government will consider scientific approaches with appropriate ethics, methodological and welfare approvals, we will not endorse programs that lack benefit and, indeed, pose threats to other species," she said.
Col Bailey, of the Tasmanian Tiger Research and Data Centre at Maydena, questioned why Mr Packer would be posting such a lucrative reward if he considered the thylacine extinct.
"They must have a ray of hope in their hearts for its present day survival to advocate such a thing," Mr Bailey said.
"If they haven't, then I'm afraid the Packer organisation's extravagant promotion is nothing more than a publicity stunt on a grand scale, and they therefore must be held accountable for their actions.
"If there is to be a large scale search for the Tasmanian tiger, then it must be a fully sanctioned and official government search."
The reward comes after an elusive German tourist recently produced photos of what he claimed was a Tasmanian tiger.
American yachtsman Ted Turner offered a $100,000 reward in 1983 and entrepreneur and adventurer Peter Wright spent $250,000 on his unsuccessful hunt for the tiger in 1985.
Edited for New Foxxinnia :)
$1.25m reward for 'extinct' tiger
By Sue Bailey
March 23, 2005
A $1.25 MILLION reward is being offered for a live Tasmanian tiger by a national magazine owned by Kerry Packer.
But the Tasmanian Government warned last night the thylacine was presumed extinct, and anyone considering taking up the bounty should not contravene state laws.
To mark its 125th year, The Bulletin is offering the reward for conclusive proof of a live, uninjured animal in the wild.
Editor-in-chief Garry Linnell said The Bulletin was prepared to solve one of Australia's most enduring mysteries.
He said in the past 70 years there had been more than 4000 reported sightings of the tiger.
"Yet not one solid shred of evidence - not a bone, a hair, much less a body - has ever been put forward to prove the thylacine is the greatest escape artist in the animal kingdom," Mr Linnell said.
"If the tiger has managed to cling to survival, proving its existence would be one of the greatest scientific stories of the century.
"A live thylacine would have many profound implications including forcing a rethink of our understanding of how endangered species can survive."
The last Tasmanian tiger died in captivity in Hobart's Beaumaris Zoo in 1936.
Environment Minister Judy Jackson said no permits would be issued to capture thylacines for any sort of bounty.
"Although the government will consider scientific approaches with appropriate ethics, methodological and welfare approvals, we will not endorse programs that lack benefit and, indeed, pose threats to other species," she said.
Col Bailey, of the Tasmanian Tiger Research and Data Centre at Maydena, questioned why Mr Packer would be posting such a lucrative reward if he considered the thylacine extinct.
"They must have a ray of hope in their hearts for its present day survival to advocate such a thing," Mr Bailey said.
"If they haven't, then I'm afraid the Packer organisation's extravagant promotion is nothing more than a publicity stunt on a grand scale, and they therefore must be held accountable for their actions.
"If there is to be a large scale search for the Tasmanian tiger, then it must be a fully sanctioned and official government search."
The reward comes after an elusive German tourist recently produced photos of what he claimed was a Tasmanian tiger.
American yachtsman Ted Turner offered a $100,000 reward in 1983 and entrepreneur and adventurer Peter Wright spent $250,000 on his unsuccessful hunt for the tiger in 1985.