Thylacoleo fossil map
Where fossils of Thylacoleo have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 0 million years ago and on today’s map.
Dots are fossil collections recorded in the Paleobiology Database. The “then” view moves today’s fossil sites back to their positions 0 million years ago (the time slice nearest the median age of the fossils) using the Merdith et al. (2021) plate model; positions are approximate. Open on the timeline map →
| Group | Ice Age & later mammals |
|---|---|
| Lived | 5.333 million years ago to the present (Zanclean to Holocene) |
| Periods | Neogene, Quaternary |
| Family | Thylacoleonidae |
| Named by | Owen 1852 |
| Fossil records | 35 occurrences at 24 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | Australia |
| Rock formations | txn:40138, D Clay, Allingham |
About Thylacoleo
Thylacoleo ("pouch lion") is an extinct genus of carnivorous marsupials that lived in Australia from the late Pliocene to the Late Pleistocene (until around 40,000 years ago), often known as marsupial lions. They were the largest and last members of the family Thylacoleonidae, occupying the position of apex predator within Australian ecosystems. The largest and last species, Thylacoleo carnifex, had an estimated average weight of 101 to 130 kg (223 to 287 lb), approaching the weight of a modern lioness (Panthera leo).
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Thylacoleo (revision 1376231287), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0; introduction excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Ages, family, authority and fossil records: Paleobiology Database, accessed 22 October 2026. Ages are those of the rock layers the fossils were found in. Wikidata: Q312099.
