{"id":41928,"date":"2024-09-10T14:07:19","date_gmt":"2024-09-10T12:07:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/f0b0b527-3274-406a-b946-3c2f8adc4f63"},"modified":"2024-09-10T14:27:29","modified_gmt":"2024-09-10T12:27:29","slug":"bone-crusher-tigers-discovered-in-australia-could-easily-crunch-through-the-bones-and-teeth-of-prey-say-scientists","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/rss_feed\/bone-crusher-tigers-discovered-in-australia-could-easily-crunch-through-the-bones-and-teeth-of-prey-say-scientists\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Bone crusher’ tigers discovered in Australia “could easily crunch through the bones and teeth of prey,” say scientists"},"content":{"rendered":"

The remains of three new species of thylacine \u2013 or Tasmanian tiger \u2013 have been dug up in Riversleigh World Heritage Area, one of the planet’s most famous fossil sites. <\/p>

By Daniel Graham\n <\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 10 September 2024 at 12:07 PM<\/p>

\n\n

Scientists have discovered the fossils of three new species of thylacine<\/a> \u2013 or Tasmanian tiger<\/strong> \u2013 from the Riversleigh World Heritage Area in Waanyi country of north-western Queensland, Australia.<\/strong><\/p>

Palaeontologists say the new species are now the oldest members of the thylacine family to date, estimated to be 25-23 million years old.<\/p>

The discoveries highlight how quickly this group of marsupials<\/a> diversified after first appearing in the fossil record, say researchers, who published their findings in the\u00a0Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>

New species of thylacines: Nimbacinus peterbridgei (top right) and Ngamalacinus nigelmarveni (bottom right) interacting with Kuterintja ngama (top left) and Gumardee springae (bottom left). Illustration credit: Peter Schouten<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Bone crusher<\/h2>

The largest of the new thylacine species discovered is\u00a0Badjcinus timfaulkneri<\/em>, which weighed between 7\u201311 kilograms \u2013 about the same size as an adult Tasmanian devil<\/a>.<\/p>

\u201cLike Tasmanian devils, the jawbone of\u00a0Badjcinus timfaulkneri\u00a0<\/em>could easily crunch through the bones and teeth of its prey,\u201d says study lead author and PhD student Tim Churchill.<\/p>

\u201cBut up until now, the much smaller\u00a0Badjcinus turnbulli<\/em>, which weighed around 2.7 kg, was the only other late Oligocene thylacinid known. <\/p>

“The teeth \u2013 including the lower jaw and isolated first molar \u2013\u00a0were found at Hiatus Site at Riversleigh, which is even older than White Hunter Site where\u00a0Badjcinus<\/em>\u00a0turnbulli<\/em>\u00a0was previously found. <\/p>

“This makes\u00a0Badjcinus timfaulkneri<\/em>\u00a0the oldest undoubted thylacine discovered so far.\u201d<\/p>

\u201cLike Tasmanian devils, the jaw bone of\u00a0Badjcinus timfaulkneri\u00a0<\/em>could easily crunch through the bones and teeth of its prey.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>

Ancient forest hunter<\/h2>

The second new species discovered was\u00a0Nimbacinus peterbridgei<\/em>. A little larger than a tiger quoll, Nimbacinus peterbridgei<\/em> weighed around 3.7 kilograms and was described from an almost complete jawbone from White Hunter Site at Riversleigh.<\/p>

\u201cNimbacinus peterbridgei<\/em>\u00a0was a more generalised predator that probably focused on small mammals and other prey species that lived in Riversleigh\u2019s ancient forests,\u201d says co-author Professor Mike Archer.<\/p>

\u201cWe think it may have been on the direct line to the only other species of\u00a0Nimbacinus<\/em>, the larger\u00a0Nimbacinus dicksoni<\/em>\u00a0(5 to 7 kilograms) that was found in 15-million-year-old deposits at Riversleigh. This group of thylacines appears to be the one that led directly to the species of\u00a0thylacinus. <\/p>

“The other two new species being described here appear to represent distinctive side branches on the thylacine\u2019s increasingly complex family tree. This means\u00a0Nimbacinus peterbridgei<\/em>\u00a0is probably the oldest direct ancestor of the Tasmanian tiger yet known.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>

Meat butcher<\/h2>

The third new member of the thylacine family is\u00a0Ngamalacinus nigelmarveni<\/em>. It weighed around 5.1 kilograms, about the size of a red fox<\/a>. It also came from White Hunter Site at Riversleigh.<\/p>

\u201cThis was a highly carnivorous thylacine,\u201d says co-author Sue Hand.<\/p>

\u201cWe know this because the cutting blades on its lower molars are elongated with deep v-shaped, carnassial \u2013 or \u2018meat-cutting\u2019 \u2013 notches.\u00a0Ngamalacinus nigelmarveni<\/em>\u00a0had these notches better developed than any of the other thylacinids of similar size.\u201d<\/p>

\"Ngamalacinus
The teeth of Ngamalacinus nigelmarveni. Credit: Timothy Churchill et al.<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Three new thylacine species<\/h2>

The three distinct lineages of thylacinids, each with their own specialised adaptations, shows how quickly this group of marsupials diversified, explains Churchill.<\/p>

\u201cThese new species exhibit very different dental adaptations, suggesting there were several unique carnivorous forest niches available during this period,\u201d he says.<\/p>

\u201cAll but one of these lineages \u2013 the one that led to the modern thylacine \u2013 became extinct eight million years ago. That lineage ended with the death of Benjamin<\/a>, the last Tasmanian tiger in Hobart\u2019s Beaumaris Zoo on September 7, 1936.\u201d<\/p>

Read more about the study: Three new thylacinids (Marsupialia, Thylacinidae) from late Oligocene deposits of the Riversleigh World Heritage Area, northwestern Queensland<\/a><\/em><\/p>

Main image credit: Badjcinus timfaulkneri\u00a0feeding on the carcass of\u00a0Silvabestius michaelbirti. Illustration by Peter Schouten<\/em><\/p>

More wild stories from around the world<\/strong><\/p>