The Dodo bird 

The dodo was a flightless bird native only to the island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. The dodo was a flightless member of the pigeon family. Fully grown dodos weighted about 23 kg (50 pounds). Around 1505 the Portuguese became the first Europeans to discover the dodo. By 1681 it had been driven to extinction by humans and the feral dogs, pigs, rats, and monkeys introduced by Europeans to Mauritius.

The dodo was not the only Mauritian bird driven to extinction in recent centuries. Of the 45 bird species originally found, only 21 still survive. Two bird species closely related to the dodo also became extinct: the Réunion solitaire (raphus solitarius). by 1746, and the Rodrigues solitaire (pezophaps solitaria) by 1790. Reports of sightings of living dodos in the 1990s on Mauritius prompted William J. Gibbons to mount expeditions to search for them. None were found.

Physical Characteristics

Mass: 13 to 23 kg.

Our present day knowledge of what the dodo looked like is based on several sources. There are accounts from the diaries and writings of the sailors and captains who landed on Mauritius in the 16th and17th century, drawings from the few humans who were able to witness them alive (although, it can't even be proven that all the artists who rendered the dodo ever actually saw one) and the few fossils excavated from the island, which are kept at the British Museum, and a foot and a beak which are preserved at Oxford.

From these records and pictures, scientists and ornithologists have pieced together a fairly detailed composite of the dodo. The dodo was a large, plump bird covered in soft, grey feathers, with a plume of white at its tail. It had small wings that were far too weak to ever lift the dodo off the ground. Because it was flightless, those who saw the bird often thought it had no real wings at all, describing them as "little winglets." Study of the skeleton reveals, however, that the dodo did in fact have wings that were simply not used for flight, much like penguins' wings.

The dodo's legs were short and stubby and yellow in color. On the end of the legs were four toes, three in front and one acting as a thumb in back, all with thick, black claws. The head was a lighter grey than the body, with small, yellow eyes. Many words have been devoted to the long, crooked and hooked beak, which was light green or pale yellow in color and was one of the most distinguishing features of the dodo. Those who saw it, marveled at the unique shape and size. One witness went so far as to describe it as grotesque. (Strickland and Melville, 1848) (Fuller, 1987) (Greenway, 1958) (Britannica, 1986)

The Thylacine (Thylacinus cynocephalus) also known as the tasmanian tiger or Tasmanian wolf was a doglike marsupial once widespread across Australia and New Guinea untill about 3000 years ago when they became restricted to Tasmania. They were related to the Tasmanian Devil. It died out in 1936 mainly due to over hunting for their pelts, other contributing factors include disease and the introdction of dogs.

Some sitings are still reported but none have ever been confirmed!

That would be so great if they could bring it back! I would love to see a Thylacine!

Was that the documentary when they had a fetus of a thylacine in a jar (I think) or is there just more than one documentary of it out there!

This my favorite extinct animal. 

The Megalodon was a prehistoric shark that probably lived between 16 - 1.5 million years ago. It is the biggest known canivorous fish to have ever existed. It fed on large mammals including whales! Now thats what I call a BIG fish! The creature was calculated to be 16m (52.5ft) long with a body mass of more than 32 tons!

 The picture above is a comparison of the sizes of the Megalodon, a Great White and a diver

How scary would it be if it was still alive today! :O I'de never want to go anywhere near the sea ever in my life!

Damn the government! I hope one day they get a brain and stop with the politics and gread. We can't bring an extinct animal back to life(Well we can but it would be hard), but politics aren't going to go extinct!

Caribbean Monk Seal Monachus tropicalis.


Last Record: 1952. Distribution: the West Indies; the Coasts of Florida, Yucatan and Eastern Central America. The three species of monk seals are true seals, belonging to the family Phocidae. They are unusual in having a tropical distribution, originally being found in the Hawaiian Islands, and the Mediterranean and Caribbean seas. Their common name results from a cowl of fatty skin on their necks, which reminded fisherme n of the habits of the monks of old. They are the most ancient of seals and are, in a sense, living fossils. Although the Caribbean monk seal was seen during Columbus' second voyage in 1494, and has been hunted almost continuously ever since, almost nothing was recorded of its biology or habits. It was large (up to 2.4 metres long) and was reputed to be very tame. The peak of pupping probably occurred in December. Hunting for skins and oil had already made it scarce by the mid-nineteenth century, while during the twentieth century it was persecuted by fishermen who accused it of competing for fish. The last reliable record is of a small colony on Seranilla Bank, between Jamaica and Honduras, in 1952. Although there have been more recent, unconfirmed reports, an aerial survey in 1973 found fishing activity throughout the region and no signs of seals. Subsequent searches have failed to locate it.

Turanian Tiger, Caspian Tiger

Caspian Tigers lived in China, Tajikistan, Iran, Afghanistan and Turkey.  They were hunted for their furs and to protect livestock.  A ban on hunting the Caspian Tiger in the USSR in 1947 followed their greatest destruction in the 1930s.  The last Caspian Tiger reported shot was in 1957.

The Coelacanth  was thought to have gone extinct 70 million years ago, the earliest fossil of a Coelacanth  dates back 410 million years ago (during the end of the Cretaceous period). However, a living specimen was first found in a trawler net off South Africa in 1938. They are said to be living fossils. They have a lifespan of 80 - 100, are around 80kg (176lb) and can grow up to 2m (6.5ft) in length. They are related to lung fishes and tetrapods and are curently Critically Endangered.

The Giant Aye aye (Daubentonia robusta) was a type of Lemur that lived in Madagascar and is an extinct relative of the Aye aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis). The last known Giant Aye aye died in 1930. It was feared as a bad oman and killed on sight, the Aye aye may suffer the same fate if action isn't taken soon to prevent there decline.

Gigantopithecus blacki (Greek and Latin for Black's Giant Ape) is a distant relative of the modern day Orangutan. The only known fossils of G.blacki are a few teeth and mandibles found in cave sites in Southeast Asia. This Giant Ape was much larger than modern day Gorillas, standing at a height of over 3m (10ft) and a weight of 550g (1200lb). The species lived in Asia and probably inhabited bamboo forests, since its fossils are often found alongside those of extinct ancestors of the panda. Most evidence points to the Gigantopithecus being a plant-eater. The animal died out approximately 100,000 years ago and would have coexisted with (anatomically) modern humans (Homo sapiens) for a few dozen thousands of years, and with the most immediate ancestors of H.sapiens before that.

now dat is one impressive animal!! so sad we cannot experience them in our lifetimes:( its our real life sasquatch!!

(once upon a time anyways)