The Last Tasmanian Tiger
The History and Extinction of the Thylacine

The most complete examination of the history and extinction of the Tasmanian tiger.

Robert Paddle (Author)

9780521531542, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 4 September 2002

284 pages, 25 b/w illus. 2 maps
24.7 x 17.6 x 2.3 cm, 0.579 kg

'… excellent, very thorough study … flows well and provides a most interesting and easy read. So much so, that the book received the Whitley Medal of the Zoological Society of New South Wales for the best science book of 2001 … The whole is beautifully researched and documented …'. The Environmentalist

This book is the most complete and up-to-date examination of the history and extinction of one of Australia's most enduring folkloric beasts - the thylacine, otherwise affectionately known as the Tasmanian tiger. Bob Paddle challenges conventional theories explaining the behaviour and eventual extinction of the thylacine, arguing that rural politicians used the Tasmanian tiger as a scapegoat to protect local agricultural enterprise from the consequences of mismanagement. After the population of thylacines was decimated through a bounty scheme, ineffective political action by scientists finally resulted in the extinction of a once proud species. Paddle also uncovers a deeper intellectual snobbery that set the scene for the thylacine's eventual extinction. The Last Tasmanian Tiger offers new perspectives on the subjective nature of scientific investigation and the politics of preservation. For its groundbreaking work it received the Whitley Medal of the Zoological Society of New South Wales for best science book of 2001.

1. Introduction: science and the species from a European perspective
2. Constructing objectivity: changing scientific perceptions of the thylacine
3. Of signal importance: select social and predatory behaviours
4. A predatory entertainment: stimuli of consuming interest
5. Ovisceral exploitation: extracts of sheepish behaviour
6. Mythology becomes misology: the dogmatism of unenlightenment
7. Faunal fun and games: the politics of protection
8. The last Tasmanian tiger: indifference and the demise of the species
9. Post-extinction blues: contingency and responsibility in extinction
10. Conclusion: the lessons to be learnt.

Subject Areas: Endangered species & extinction of species [RNKH1], History of science [PDX], Australasian & Pacific history [HBJM]