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THE THYLACINE IN CAPTIVITY:
- BENJAMIN: THE LAST KNOWN CAPTIVE THYLACINE -
(page 5)
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Benjamin's gender?:

    Not only is the source of Benjamin disputed, but opinions, until rather recently, were divided regarding this individual's sex. 

    As noted in the introductory comments, Robert Paddle, in his book "The Last Tasmanian Tiger", states that the name "Benjamin", and therefore the implied sex of the animal, were derived from a dubious interview given by Frank Darby.

    Paddle asserts that none of Fleay's photographs or film footage of Benjamin give any indication that the animal was male.  He notes that the scrotal sac of the male thylacine is pendulous and would normally be evident when the animal is relaxed, and argues that it is reasonable to assume that the absence of such an obvious sign of maleness implies that the animal was female..

David Fleay with platypus - Healesville Sanctuary - 1944
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David Fleay with a mother platypus (on the right) and her baby at the Healesville Sanctuary, Victoria, in 1944.  Dr. Fleay was the first to succeed in breeding the platypus in captivity.
Photo courtesy: David Fleay Trustees.
    The alternative position in the debate is that Benjamin was a male.  In a newspaper article published by David Fleay in the Melbourne press (Australasian, 20th January 1934 [p. 43]) one month after his return from Hobart he states: 

    "First & foremost is a fine male marsupial wolf, actually the sole member of its kind in captivity today".  He continues, "The big fellow in the zoo was not a safe companion inside his enclosure, and while photographs were being taken Mr. Reid had to ward him off continually with a paling".

    Note Fleay's choice of words "big fellow" and "him", confirming that the animal was male.  In the September 1963 edition of the National Geographic Magazine, Fleay once again confirms the thylacine's sex:

    "Early observers marvelled at the creature's huge jaws 'opening almost to the ears'.  Some idea of this is conveyed in the photograph I took of the last one ever kept in captivity.  This male specimen, fed on horse meat and hungry for variety, sidled up to me as I knelt in his cage and slightly attempted to add my leg to his bill of fare"  (Fleay 1963).

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    In December 2010, Dr. Stephen Sleightholme, the Director of the International Thylacine Specimen Database Project, made a remarkable discovery that finally solved beyond any doubt the 74-year-old gender question.  His findings were published in the December 2011 edition of the Australian Zoologist, in a paper entitled "Confirmation of the gender of the last captive Thylacine"

    Sleightholme meticulously examined each frame of Fleay's movie footage to see if there was any clue that would indicate gender.  The Thylacine Museum's online copy of the Fleay film (which runs for 45 seconds) was used for his research, and so the museum is proud to have contributed to his discovery.

    At first view of the Fleay footage, there is, as Paddle advocates, no evidence to suggest that the animal was male.  David Fleay entered the thylacine enclosure at the Beaumaris Zoo together with Arthur Reid the curator, to take a series of photographs and to record his film.  The presence of a stranger in the enclosure, along with his cumbersome camera equipment, would certainly have stressed the thylacine.  It is on record that Fleay received a bite to his buttock from his reluctant host during filming.  The bite and the wide threat-yawn response seen on Fleay's film were guarded warnings that his presence was not welcome.

    Sleightholme states that in periods of stress, the scrotum would have been held closely within the "pseudo-pouch" that surrounds it, and this would make casual observation of gender difficult.  Assuming this to be the case, he thought it improbable for evidence of gender to be observed when the thylacine was walking around its enclosure.  He therefore concentrated his attention on three short sequences in the film where Benjamin was either seated or lying down.  In one of these sequences, the animal is observed in a seated position, turning its head and displaying its threat-yawn.  It is at this point, where the lower abdomen is clearly visible, that Sleightholme made his discovery.  When the frame is enlarged (see image below), the scrotal sac can clearly be seen, confirming beyond any doubt that Benjamin was male.

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Benjamin - Beaumaris Zoo (QD) - 1933
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Magnified area brightened 34% and contrast increased 70% to improve clarity.
Film still courtesy: David Fleay Trustees.
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Closing comments:

    An article published in the Queenslander newspaper on the 15th November 1934 (p. 40), notes Benjamin's body measurements:

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    "The wolf in the Hobart zoo, a fair specimen of its kind, measures 44in. (1.12m) in length with a 21in. (.53m) tail".

    The Tasmanian winter of 1936 was particularly severe.  Benjamin, the world's last known captive thylacine, died on the night of 7th September 1936 from exposure to the cold; having been left out of his shelter overnight.

    Late in 1937, the City Council decided to discontinue operation of the zoo, stating that its maintenance was "no longer in the best interests of the city".  The Great Depression of the 1930s saw attendance at the zoo steadily falling, and it was finally closed to the public on 25th November 1937.  Today, at both the Sandy Bay and Queen's Domain sites that it once occupied, only a few tenuous reminders of the zoo remain.

In Australia, September 7th is designated as National Threatened Species Day.  Among advocates of the thylacine, it has also come to be known as National Thylacine Day.

Here at the Thylacine Museum, a memorial book is maintained in honor of Benjamin and the rest of his species.  It is available for signing year-round.  Click on the image below to access the book.
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go to: The Thylacine Memorial Book
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sign/read The Thylacine Memorial Book
or, read archived entries
newspaper article announcing decision to close Beaumaris Zoo
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Source: The Mercury, 17th August 1937 (p. 2).
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newspaper clippings, Hobart - early 1930s
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References
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back to: Benjamin - The Last Known Captive Thylacine (page 4) return to the section's introduction forward to: The Historical Thylacine Films


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