Extinct, or not? These animal species are (perhaps) alive and well | Abroad

The long-beaked echidna is known as a shy nocturnal animal that is difficult to find. In June and July this year, the animal, officially called the Zaglossus Attenboroughi (named after the famous British wildlife fanatic Sir David Attenborough), was spotted by a wildlife camera. Biologist James Kempton discovered the images after a trip in the mountains on the last memory card of more than eighty cameras. “I’m not kidding when I say it was on the very last SD card we looked at on the very last day of our expedition,” Kempton told British news media who released the news on Friday.

The long-beaked echidna isn’t the only animal thought to be extinct. Below are five other animals that remained hidden for a long time, but were rediscovered or of which there is a good chance that they are still around somewhere.

The great ivory-billed woodpecker is a bird the size of a crow and requires a territory of at least 16 square meters. The woodpecker lives in North America and was last seen in 1950 on the Gulf Coast in Louisiana. In 2004, an American claimed to have rediscovered the woodpecker in the US state of Arkansas, but this was later questioned by scientists. Possibly that bird could be another common woodpecker. The great ivory-billed woodpecker lives in forests that are difficult to access, so who knows, the animal may still be fluttering around where no human can reach.

This animal looks a bit like a boar and for a long time they were only known as fossils. It was therefore thought that the animals had long been extinct. In 1971, scientists discovered that groups of chacopekars were hiding in Bolivia, Argentina and Paraguay in the Gran Chaco area. The indigenous peoples who live there appeared to have known about their existence all along. Yet the chacopekari’s life is not guaranteed. It is legal to hunt the animals and they are said to naturally have many health problems.

The eyelash gecko gets its name from the small protrusions around its eyes. The eyelash gecko, which originates from France, was thought extinct for centuries. Until he was spotted again in 1994. Since their rediscovery, they have become extremely popular as pets among reptile enthusiasts. They do come with a hefty price tag: they cost between $70 and $400. Fun Facts: These animals lick their eyes to keep them wet and they can live up to 20 years.

The Tasmanian tiger originally lived in Australia and New Guinea. The only reason why these animals are called ‘tigers’ is because of their stripes. They have more similarities with the Tasmanian devil, a type of marsupial. The Tasmanian tiger is thought to have become extinct in 1936. Officially, one has never been seen again, but since then there have been reports in Australia from people claiming to have seen (traces of) the animal. Until now, no one has managed to take a reliable photo.