The Yorke Peninsula in 1919 saw a loss of sheep occur in such a way, and in such a short time, that it drew comparisons to the Tantanoola Tiger sheep killings thirty‑odd years earlier.
For more than nine months, sheep were found slaughtered in fields near Kadina. Farmers described the beast as “wolf‑like, but immense in size.” Sydney’s The World’s News published an article on 19 June 1943 titled There Are Queer Creatures in This Australia by V. Molesworth, in which the creature was referred to as the “Kadina Wehrwolf.”
Wolf‑like howls and shrieks filled the night air, and by morning a farmer or two would discover some of his sheep torn to pieces. A reward of ten pounds was offered for the capture of the beast, which rural locals described as “big enough to devour a child.”
Farmers and hunters began lying in wait, hoping to be the one to bring the creature down. The beast was often heard but never seen—until, twenty‑one days later, Mr. D. Tully finally witnessed it.
Mr. Tully had set out to check watering holes, troughs, and dams in his area. With him were a pack of stag hounds and greyhounds. He spotted the wolf and set his dogs after it, but they refused to give chase, overcome with fear.
He next saw it while riding his horse. He pursued the beast and came within thirty yards of it before its odour overwhelmed his horse, which reared and bolted.
Determined not to give up, Mr. Tully set several rabbit traps around his property. Eventually he found the beast caught by the foot near a fence. As he approached, it snarled and gnashed at him. Tully raised his shotgun and fired into its mouth. Believing it dead, he stepped closer—only for it to rise and lunge at him again. This time he fired both barrels directly down its throat, killing it.
The “Kadina Wehrwolf” was no more. The beast weighed over 30 kilograms and measured 1.3 metres from nose to tail. It stood 68 centimetres tall. Its chest and neck were noted for their strength. The head was described as wide and short, with pricked ears. Its coat was brindle, coarse, and medium‑length, with alternating black and tan striping on the rump and forelegs.
The animal was female, and a small litter of pups was later found near a railway culvert, drowned by floodwaters they could not escape. Mr. Tully kept the hide and intended to take it to the Adelaide Museum, though whether he ever did so remains unconfirmed.
Absolutely a mainland Thylacine
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