Is bringing back extinct animals a good idea? The dodo has been dead for hundreds of years. But now some scientists think it could walk the Earth again.
We'll bring the dodo back, scientists claim
Is bringing back extinct animals a good idea? The dodo has been dead for hundreds of years. But now some scientists think it could walk the Earth again.
What's happening?
The dodo is famous for being dead. The large flightlessFlightless creatures cannot fly. bird with a big beak was last seen nearly 400 years ago near MauritiusAn island and state in the Indian Ocean. in the Indian Ocean. But now, scientists say they could bring it back to life.
The last dodos were hunted by humans in the 1660s. They are now extinctA species that no longer has any living members..
Find out more
Today, scientists have a plan to make the dodo walk again. One of the closest living relatives of the dodo is a type of pigeon called the Nicobar pigeon. Scientists hope they can make some changes to the Nicobar pigeon's genesSections of DNA strands that act as a kind of instruction manual for a human being. There is still a great deal we do not understand about how they work. to make it more like a dodo.
This is not a new idea. There are also plans to bring back the woolly mammoth.
Is bringing back extinct animals a good idea?
Yes! Most extinct animals were hunted to death by humans. If we can use science to bring them back, we should!
No! Bringing back the dodo will cost millions of pounds. It would be better to focus on saving animals that are still alive, like rhinos and tigers.
Keywords
Flightless - Flightless creatures cannot fly.
Mauritius - An island and state in the Indian Ocean.
Extinct - A species that no longer has any living members.
Genes - Sections of DNA strands that act as a kind of instruction manual for a human being. There is still a great deal we do not understand about how they work.
We’ll bring the dodo back, scientists claim
Glossary
Flightless - Flightless creatures cannot fly.
Mauritius - An island and state in the Indian Ocean.
Extinct - A species that no longer has any living members.
Genes - Sections of DNA strands that act as a kind of instruction manual for a human being. There is still a great deal we do not understand about how they work.