A Tasmanian tiger enthusiast has stirred the debate on whether the large carnivorous dog is actually extinct, by claiming there have been numerous sightings of the animal on mainland Australia.

World-renowned thylacine hunter Michael Moss truly believes that the striped dogs are still out there, despite them being declared extinct and having not been conclusively sighted for the past 70 years.

Mr Moss claims he has dash-cam footage of the elusive creature roaming the countryside in Victoria and believes there will be concrete evidence in the near future to prove they are in fact still alive.

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The Tasmanian tiger (pictured) has not been seen for the past 70 years

'There has already been a claimed sighting of one in Fisheries Rd, Devon Meadows, a few years ago,' Mr Moss told the Cranbourne Leader.

'And I've got footage of what I believe is one crossing a paddock in the Strezlecki Ranges, near Wilsons Promontory.

'Most reports to date have been of animals near or crossing roads ... with the advent of dashboard cameras in cars, I think we will see some concrete evidence before much longer.'

Mr Moss has spent the past 20 years scouring Australia for the yellowish-brown animal after he released a video of a dog-like creature scurrying across the Strzelecki Ranges 15 years ago.

Michael Moss believes they are still alive in Victoria despite the fact they were declared extinct

The grainy video shows a scrawny dog-like animal scampering across the ranges at top speed, showing off the classic thylacine feature of a striped torso.

The video has been viewed over 166,000 times online with many commenters debating whether or not the creature is alive and well.

At one time in Australia the Tasmanian tiger was widespread and they even extended to New Guinea.

They were declared extinct mainly due to extensive hunting and competition from the dingo

Fossils have been discovered in South Australia, Victoria and WA of what is believed to be the Tasmanian tiger.