Are the Tasmanian wolf and the Tasmanian tiger the same animal?

Answered Mar 28, 2019

This article is part of a series of Q&A on the Tasmanian Tiger originally answered on Quora

Yes!

The Tasmanian Tiger'a scientific name is Thylacinus cynocephalus and its most popular common name is "Tasmanian Tiger". It is also commonly called the Thylacine.

"Marsupial Wolf" is a less commonly used name that probably had greater usage in the past.

When Europeans first explored Tasmania (and Australia in general) they really had little idea about marsupials. Many animals were given names that were somewhat similar to animals that the Europeans understood. For example, the animal we now call a "Wombat" was sometimes called a "Badger". The animal we now call a "Quoll" was called a "Native Cat" (or "Tiger Cat", depending on species, but "Tiger Cat" is not the same as "Tasmanian Tiger").

Other words used to describe the Tasmanian Tiger, in various combinations include "Marspuial Wolf" and "Hyena Opossum".

It was called "Wolf" because of its general dog, or wolf-like shape, and "Marsupial" because of its marsupium - that is, its pouch.

It was called "Hyena" because of a resemblance to that African creature, and "Opossum", which is an American marsupial after which our Australian "Possum"s are named, in reference again to the Tasmanian Tiger being a marsupial - as is the Opossum.