Is de-extinction a good idea? For years the phrase “dead as a dodo” has been used to describe things gone for ever. But now advances in biology could revive this extraordinary bird.
We'll bring the dodo back, scientists claim
Is de-extinction a good idea? For years the phrase "dead as a dodo" has been used to describe things gone for ever. But now advances in biology could revive this extraordinary bird.
<h2 class=" eplus-wrapper" id="crosshead">Mauritian mission </h2>
Wandering through the museum, Beth Shapiro stopped in amazement. There in front of her were the remains of a bird last seen alive in the 17th Century. What if her research into ancient DNADeoxyribonucleic acid is the material in an organism that carries genetic information. could bring the dodo to life again?
Twenty years later, her dream is close to reality. The company she works for, Colossal Biosciences, is raising £122m for her project.
The dodo fascinated Europeans after Dutch sailors spotted it in the 16th Century. It lived in the forests of MauritiusAn island and state in the Indian Ocean., growing to 1m high and weighing up to 20kg. It fed on fruit and could not fly.
Tragically, the cats, dogs and rats the Dutch ships brought with them wrecked the bird's habitatAn animal's habitat is the place that they live in. and ate its eggs. In less than 100 years it was extinct.
Hundreds of dodo skeletons were kept in museum collections. Using the DNA from these, Beth Shapiro worked out that its nearest living relation was a pigeon.
The plan is to edit the pigeon's genes to bring them closer to the dodo's. This, is it is hoped, will result in an egg similar to a dodo's.
According to the head of Colossal Biosciences, Ben Lamm, this version of the bird could be "rewilded" in Mauritius.
Colossal has already been working to recreate the woolly mammoth and the thylacine. This dog-like striped animal is also known as the TasmanianAn island state of Australia, located to the south of the mainland. tiger.
With the woolly mammoth, the aim is to put the edited genes into an elephant which would then give birth. But this could be very stressful for the animals involved. It is hoped that birds laying eggs would not suffer in the same way.
But Beth Shapiro warns that the result will never be exactly like a dodo. "What we are trying to do is to isolate the genes that distinguish the dodo," she said.1 "It would be crazy to think the solution [to the world's biodiversity crisis] was to bring back a proxyA person or country used to represent someone else.."
Yes: This is a brilliant way to undo some of the damage done by human beings. It would increase biodiversity by filling the world with marvellous creatures that did not deserve to die out.
No: It would be a waste of money which would be better spent on conservation. We can never bring these creatures back exactly as they were. They might be just as bad at surviving in the modern world.
Or... It should be focused on our own species rather than animals. We could learn a huge amount by bringing early modern humans back to life, such as those whose remains were found at Omo Kibish in Kenya.
DNA - Deoxyribonucleic acid is the material in an organism that carries genetic information.
Mauritius - An island and state in the Indian Ocean.
Habitat - An animal's habitat is the place that they live in.
Tasmanian - An island state of Australia, located to the south of the mainland.
Proxy - A person or country used to represent someone else.
<h5 class=" eplus-wrapper" id="question"><strong>Is de-extinction a good idea?</strong> </h5>
We’ll bring the dodo back, scientists claim

Glossary
DNA - Deoxyribonucleic acid is the material in an organism that carries genetic information.
Mauritius - An island and state in the Indian Ocean.
Habitat - An animal’s habitat is the place that they live in.
Tasmanian - An island state of Australia, located to the south of the mainland.
Proxy - A person or country used to represent someone else.