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ABC News
25-07-2025
- Science
- ABC News
Colossal Biosciences wants to bring the moa back from extinction
Thomas and Ollie, both 15, turn to a classic 1990s sci-fi film as a point of reference when the topic of "de-extinction" is raised. "It just depends on the animal and what it can do to society, like a dinosaur — that would just not be a good thing," Thomas says. "[So] not the plot of Jurassic Park." "I think the plot of Jurassic Park would be cool," Ollie says. Marvee, 14, thinks "some things would go wrong". "I've watched Jurassic Park," she says. The film is also a conversation starter for academics such as Nic Rawlence from the University of Otago's palaeogenetics laboratory. "It's like that quote out of Jurassic Park from Malcolm … 'We were so busy thinking about whether we could, that we didn't stop to think about whether we should,'" he says. But discussions about bringing extinct animals back to life are no longer limited to the genre of science fiction. American biotech company Colossal Biosciences has recently announced plans to bring back a flightless bird from New Zealand that could grow as tall as 3.6 metres. The moa became extinct about 500 years ago due to hunting, habitat destruction and introduced predators. The company has also been working to resurrect the woolly mammoth and the Tasmanian tiger. In October last year Colossal Biosciences announced the birth of what it said were the first dire wolves to be born in more than 10,000 years. The moa project has generated excitement among followers, including director Peter Jackson, who has invested about $23 million into the project. "It has given me more enjoyment and satisfaction than any films ever have," he says. "It's uniquely a New Zealand bird, so it's something that we've always been very fascinated with." But what does it mean to "de-extinct" a species? "The process of de-extinction is that we extract DNA from ancient bones and we sequence that DNA and assemble ancient genomes," Colossal Biosciences chief science officer Beth Shapiro says. "To de-extinct the moa we are collecting DNA from all nine species of moa. "We'll be comparing the genome sequences to genomes of living birds to identify what it is that made moa unique,and using the tools of genome editing to make those changes in the DNA sequence of the living, close relatives." This definition of de-extinction is a point of contention. "De-extinction, in the strictest sense, is bringing back an animal that has been extinct, bringing it back to life," says Associate Professor Rawlence says. Dr Rawlence explains that high-quality DNA is needed for cloning to be successful. "The problem with extinct animals is that, for the most part, their DNA is really badly degraded," he says. "It's like you've taken that DNA, and you've put it in a wood-fired pizza oven at 500 degrees overnight and it comes out fragmented in shards, crumbs, dust, chemically modified." This degradation means ancient DNA is too damaged to clone. Dr Rawlence says the only way to create an animal that is similar to one that is extinct is to use genetic engineering. "So bringing back the dire wolf, you've created a genetically engineered grey wolf — you would do the same with emu and moa," he says. "A good analogy is if it walks like a duck, talks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it's a duck. "What we have is we've got something that looks like a dire wolf, but we're not entirely sure it actually behaves like a dire wolf." Ollie worries about how the behaviour of genetically engineered animals could disrupt ecosystems. "[The moa] might not have the same behaviours as it had a long time ago," he says. "It could disrupt the food chain or it could kill other animals." Zoe, 16, agrees. "Why do we need the moa, kind of?" she asks. "It's like, what purpose does it have here? It could maybe endanger emus." Gabriel, 16, says he thinks de-extinction projects could take money away from other scientific research. "If they're just taking an emu and sort of like changing it to bring [the moa] back, I mean, what are we really going to gain from this?" he says. "I don't think it's very necessary. "There's no need to bring them [the moa] back and take money out of the science … budget as a whole." Dr Rawlence says public interest is often the key to securing investment in projects. "It's something to be said that it's easier to get funding from the private sector and celebrities to de-extinct an animal than it is to, say, genetically engineer one [an animal] so it can survive," he says. "The public aren't interested and want to hear about Jurassic Park and de-extincting animals." Dr Rawlence is opposed to de-extinction but believes the technology involved is important and should be developed to help save endangered animals. "You could use this technology to genetically engineer animals to be resistant to a disease, giving them the chance to evolve with climate change in a fast-changing world," he says. "Colossal scientists said we have a moral obligation to bring back these species and undo the sins of the past. "I'd say we need to learn from them, otherwise we're doomed to repeat them." Marvee and Zoe's feelings about the technology depend on its application. "I think it's a really good idea just helping the endangered animals at the moment, like polar bears or rhinos," Marvee says. "If it's used for commercial purposes … that'll cross the line, I reckon," Zoe says.
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Business Standard
11-07-2025
- Science
- Business Standard
Jurassic Park for real? Biotech firm to revive New Zealand's giant bird
Towering over three metres tall, the South Island giant moa was a true titan of the bird world — the tallest bird ever to walk the Earth. For millennia, this flightless herbivore roamed the lush forests of New Zealand, browsing on trees and shrubs with unmatched dominance. But its reign came to an abrupt end 600 years ago with the arrival of humans who hunted it to extinction. The legendary moa now lives on only through Māori oral traditions and scattered remnants: ancient bones, traces of mummified flesh, and the occasional feather — haunting clues to a lost giant. Now, centuries after its disappearance, the giant bird is set to be the latest resurrection target for Colossal Biosciences — a Texas-based biotech company known for its audacious attempts to revive extinct creatures. On Tuesday, the company announced plans to "bring back" the moa within the next ten years, calling the project part of its growing mission to restore lost biodiversity. 'We're bringing back avian dinosaurs,' the company declared. The South Island giant moa (Dinornis robustus) was the largest of nine known moa species, capable of reaching up to 12 feet (3.6 metres) in height. While all moas vanished within a few hundred years of human settlement in New Zealand, Colossal says it hopes to reverse that loss using advanced genetic engineering — in partnership with local Indigenous communities. Can genetic engineering truly bring back lost species? Colossal's plans are ambitious, but they're also raising serious scientific concerns. The company has already faced scrutiny for claiming earlier this year that it had brought back the dire wolf — an Ice Age predator believed to have gone extinct over 10,000 years ago. But after the reveal, many experts pushed back, calling it misleading. The recreated animals, they argued, were simply grey wolves with minor gene edits — not true dire wolves. Even Beth Shapiro, Colossal's chief scientist, later admitted the animals were 'gray wolves with 20 edits' and clarified in an interview with New Scientist that 'it's not possible to bring something back that is identical to a species that used to be alive.' Despite this, the company has doubled down on its original claims, insisting it had indeed "resurrected" the dire wolf. Similar questions now surround the moa project — and others in Colossal's pipeline, including plans to bring back the woolly mammoth, the dodo, and the thylacine (also known as the Tasmanian tiger). Critics argue that, while the science may be impressive, the outcomes are far from true de-extinction. 'There is no existing genetic technology capable of truly bringing a lost species back to life — especially one that's been absent from its ecosystem and evolutionary journey for centuries,' said Philip Seddon, a zoology professor at the University of Otago, in a statement to the New Zealand Science Media Centre (NZSMC). 'No matter the scientific precision, the outcome will never be a real moa. It cannot be. The moa was a singular marvel, shaped by thousands of years of natural evolution — a legacy that simply can't be replicated in a lab.' How Colossal plans to recreate the moa According to Colossal, the process to 'revive' the moa involves extracting DNA from preserved remains of all nine moa species and comparing it with the genetic codes of living birds. Speaking to Time magazine, Shapiro said scientists aim to identify key genetic traits unique to the moa and then engineer those into the genome of the emu or tinamou — two of the moa's closest living relatives. The result would be a modified bird, bred to resemble the extinct giant as closely as possible. But experts caution this will be, at best, a proxy — not a perfect clone. Dr Tori Herridge, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Sheffield, who turned down an offer to join Colossal's advisory board, is among those raising ethical and scientific red flags. 'Is de-extinction possible? No, it's not,' she told The Guardian. 'What we might eventually create are genetically modified organisms that mimic some traits of extinct species, based on what we think they looked like. But using the term 'de-extinction' skips over the hard questions. We're not bringing back the mammoth, the moa or the dodo — we're creating something new to engineer ecological change.'
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Business Standard
11-07-2025
- Science
- Business Standard
De-extinction firm to bring back avian dinosaurs within next 10 years
Towering over three metres tall, the South Island giant moa was a true titan of the bird world — the tallest bird ever to walk the Earth. For millennia, this flightless herbivore roamed the lush forests of New Zealand, browsing on trees and shrubs with unmatched dominance. But its reign came to an abrupt end 600 years ago with the arrival of humans who hunted it to extinction. The legendary moa now lives on only through Māori oral traditions and scattered remnants: ancient bones, traces of mummified flesh, and the occasional feather — haunting clues to a lost giant. Now, centuries after its disappearance, the giant bird is set to be the latest resurrection target for Colossal Biosciences — a Texas-based biotech company known for its audacious attempts to revive extinct creatures. On Tuesday, the company announced plans to "bring back" the moa within the next ten years, calling the project part of its growing mission to restore lost biodiversity. 'We're bringing back avian dinosaurs,' the company declared. The South Island giant moa (Dinornis robustus) was the largest of nine known moa species, capable of reaching up to 12 feet (3.6 metres) in height. While all moas vanished within a few hundred years of human settlement in New Zealand, Colossal says it hopes to reverse that loss using advanced genetic engineering — in partnership with local Indigenous communities. Can genetic engineering truly bring back lost species? Colossal's plans are ambitious, but they're also raising serious scientific concerns. The company has already faced scrutiny for claiming earlier this year that it had brought back the dire wolf — an Ice Age predator believed to have gone extinct over 10,000 years ago. But after the reveal, many experts pushed back, calling it misleading. The recreated animals, they argued, were simply grey wolves with minor gene edits — not true dire wolves. Even Beth Shapiro, Colossal's chief scientist, later admitted the animals were 'gray wolves with 20 edits' and clarified in an interview with New Scientist that 'it's not possible to bring something back that is identical to a species that used to be alive.' Despite this, the company has doubled down on its original claims, insisting it had indeed "resurrected" the dire wolf. Similar questions now surround the moa project — and others in Colossal's pipeline, including plans to bring back the woolly mammoth, the dodo, and the thylacine (also known as the Tasmanian tiger). Critics argue that, while the science may be impressive, the outcomes are far from true de-extinction. 'There is no existing genetic technology capable of truly bringing a lost species back to life — especially one that's been absent from its ecosystem and evolutionary journey for centuries,' said Philip Seddon, a zoology professor at the University of Otago, in a statement to the New Zealand Science Media Centre (NZSMC). 'No matter the scientific precision, the outcome will never be a real moa. It cannot be. The moa was a singular marvel, shaped by thousands of years of natural evolution — a legacy that simply can't be replicated in a lab.' How Colossal plans to recreate the moa According to Colossal, the process to 'revive' the moa involves extracting DNA from preserved remains of all nine moa species and comparing it with the genetic codes of living birds. Speaking to Time magazine, Shapiro said scientists aim to identify key genetic traits unique to the moa and then engineer those into the genome of the emu or tinamou — two of the moa's closest living relatives. The result would be a modified bird, bred to resemble the extinct giant as closely as possible. But experts caution this will be, at best, a proxy — not a perfect clone. Dr Tori Herridge, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Sheffield, who turned down an offer to join Colossal's advisory board, is among those raising ethical and scientific red flags. 'Is de-extinction possible? No, it's not,' she told The Guardian. 'What we might eventually create are genetically modified organisms that mimic some traits of extinct species, based on what we think they looked like. But using the term 'de-extinction' skips over the hard questions. We're not bringing back the mammoth, the moa or the dodo — we're creating something new to engineer ecological change.'
Otago Daily Times
08-07-2025
- Science
- Otago Daily Times
Company plans to bring back South Island giant moa
A new project backed by film-maker Sir Peter Jackson aims to bring the extinct South Island giant moa back to life in less than eight years. Using advanced genetic engineering, iwi Ngāi Tahu, Canterbury Museum, and US biotech firm Colossal Biosciences plan to extract DNA from preserved moa remains to recreate the towering flightless bird. Senior curator of natural history at Canterbury Museum which holds the largest collection of moa remains in the world, Paul Scofield, says he's optimistic about the collaboration. He says they hope to eventually have an ecological reserve on Ngāi Tahu land for moa. The South Island giant moa stood up to 3.6 metres tall, weighed around 230kg and typically lived in forests and shrubbery. 100% confidence in project Colossal Biosciences chief executive and co-founder Ben Lamm said humans drove the moa to extinction so if technology could help bring it back and contribute to saving other existing species as well as inspire children it would be "the holy grail". Ngāi Tahu Research Centre would effectively be like a board of directors for the project, he told RNZ. While the business worked with conservationists and indigenous groups all over the world, "we've never had this level of cultural immersion before ... the excitement here at Colossal is just palpable." The project had only just started, however, he was confident that within a decade a moa hatchling would be a reality "and back on this planet". "I hope it's closer to five or six [years] ... worst case ten, but it's still miraculous in terms of that technology curve." Ngāi Tahu Research Centre would be the owners of the moa and would have a full input into everything being done. The habitat still existed that the moa would live in, however, "we don't expect them to be running through Christchurch." He was 100 percent confident moa would become a reality because the tools and technology existed. "We're just advancing them further." Sir Peter Jackson who is funding the project said he had assumed years ago that many scientific wonders would become a reality in his lifetime. However, it hasn't happened and he was impressed with the work of Colossal Biosciences which "has rekindled my hope for the future", he said on the company's website. 'Astonishing leaps' Scofield told RNZ the project was "an astonishing opportunity". The US firm was world-leading in its field and was also trying to bring back the woolly mammoth, the dodo, the Tasmanian tiger and other extinct animals. It was making "astonishing leaps on an almost daily basis". The museum's main role was to ensure the project was Māori-led. It was working with the Ngāi Tahu Research Centre at the University of Canterbury and also ensuring all the concerns of Māori were addressed. "The research will actually benefit Māori economically in creating a vast ecological reserve on Māori land where moa are actually are able to be seen." The necessary DNA would come partly from the remains at the museum but also from freshly excavated material. The latter would be better quality because some of the former had been stored for 160 years. "We're hoping the combination of freshly excavated material and the collections themselves will enable us to have the genetic resources we require for this project." The process was called de-extinction because thousands of genes would need to be identified covering the moa's size, brain capacity, feathers, colour, eyesight and other characteristics. Then a related living species would be used as a genetic surrogate. "Doing things that have effectively never been done before outside the human genome to actually recreate animals that are actually to all intents and purposes are exactly analagous to the extinct species."
BBC News
08-04-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Sabi pipo no agree say dire wolf don come back from extinction
One ogbonge snow white wolf bin dey on top di cover of Time Magazine today togeda wit headline wey announce say di dire wolf don come back. Di dire wolf wey now dey extinct get serious popularity afta e show for di Game of Thrones. But na real animal wey bin exist ova 10,000 years ago and dey waka across di Americas. One company wey dem dey call Colossal Bioscience na dem cause di headlines as dem say dem use "deft genetic engineering and olden days DNS" take breed three dire wolf to take "de-extinct" di species. But even though di young wolves wey dem name Romulus, Remus and Khaleesi na proof of ogbonge technological breakthrough, independent sabi pipo tok say no be dire wolves dem be. Zoologist Philip Seddon from di University of Otago for New Zealand explain say di animals na "genetically modified grey wolves". Colossal reveal dia efforts come outside say dem dey use cutting edge genetic techniques to take bring back extinct animals like di woollt mammoth and di Tasmanian tiger. But sabi pipo don torchlight important biological differneces between di wolf for di cover of di Time and di dire wolf wey bin fry roam and hunt for di last ice age. Paleogeneticist Dr Nic Rawlence, we also be from Otago University, explain how di ancient dire wolf DNA wey dem comot from fossil remains bin dey too degraded and damaged to fir biologically copy or clone. Dr Rawlence tell BBC News say, "ancient DNA be like if you put fresh DNA for inside 500 degree oven overnight. E go comot fragmented like shards and dust. You fit reconstruct am but e no go dey good enough to do any oda tin wit." E add say instead di de-extinction team use new synthetic biology technology wey snip pieces of DNA and insert dem to genetic code of living animal wey still get dia full bological blueprint in tact, in dis case dem use grey wolf. Dr Rawlence say, "so wetin Colossal don produce na grey wolf, but e get some dire wolf like characteristics like bigger skull and white fur. Na hybrid." Dr Beth Shapiro, wey be biologist from Colossal Biosciences say dis work represent de-extinction wey she tok say mea recreating animals wit di same characteristics. "Grey wolf na di closest living relative of dire wolf, genetically dem dey very similar so we target DNA sequences wey lead to dire wolf traits and den edit grey wolf cells... den we clone those cells and create our dire wolves." According ot Dr Rawlence sha, dire wolves comot from grey wolves anywia between 2.5 to six million years ago. E ok say, "na completely different genus to grey wolves. Colossal compare di genomes of di dire wolf and di grey wolf and from about 19,000 genes, dem determine say di 20 changes for 14 genes give dem dire wolf." Di edited embryos bin dey implanted inside surrogate domestic dog mamas. According to di article for di Time, all three wolves bin dey born wit planned C-section to fit minimise risk of complication. Colossal wey bin dey valued at $10bn for January dey keep di wolves for private 2,000-acre facility for one undisclosed location for northern US. Las-las sha, di pups resemble weti many pipo dey tink of wen dem tok about dire-wolf and di tori don gada global attention. So wetin come make dis scientific distinction to dey important? Dr Rawlence tell BBC News say "na bicos extiction still be forever. If we no get extinction how we go take learn from our mistakes? "Di message now don turn sat we fit destroy di environment, and say animals fit go extinct but we go fit bring dem back?"
