Gaze into the bygone era through a lens marked with tears. Experience anew the transient beauty of creatures forever hushed, entwined in the harsh fabric of time. These last-known photos encapsulate the poignant narratives of diverse species, reflecting the impact of human activities, environmental changes, and the inexorable passage of time on Earth's once-vibrant biodiversity.

Thylacine

Commonly known as the Tasmanian tiger or Tasmanian wolf, was an extinct carnivorous marsupial native to Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea. Extinct in New Guinea and mainland Australia around 3,600 to 3,200 years ago, the thylacine faced various threats, including the introduction of the dingo. Extensive hunting, disease, competition with dingoes, human encroachment, and climate change contributed to its extinction. The last thylacine remains were discovered in 2022, and numerous unconfirmed sightings have been reported since extinction.

Despite efforts to clone and revive them, the thylacine remains an icon in Tasmania. National Threatened Species Day is commemorated on the date of its last known death, September 7th. The animal's genome has been mapped, and research continues worldwide. The extinction coincided with other factors like human population growth, technological advances, and climate change, with some Aboriginal Australians expressing awareness and concern through rock carvings.

Quagga

An extinct subspecies of the plains zebra once thrived in South Africa until human-driven hunting led to its demise in the late 19th century. Initially considered a distinct species, genetic studies later classified it as a subspecies or the southernmost cline of the plains zebra. The last known quagga in the wild perished in the Orange Free State in the late 1870s, marking the end of its dwindling population.

The final wild quagga died in 1878, while captive specimens in London and Berlin succumbed in 1872 and 1875, respectively. The last captive quagga, a female in Amsterdam's Natura Artis Magistra zoo, lived from 1867 to 1883, with uncertain origins and causes of death. The international acceptance of the quagga's extinction came with the 1900 Convention for the Preservation of Wild Animals, Birds, and Fish in Africa. The last specimen, commemorated on a Dutch stamp in 1988, is preserved at the Naturalis Biodiversity Center in Leiden.