by Luke Tarnosky
On April 7, a biotechnology company named Colossal Laboratories & Biosciences came forth with an extremely bold claim against the laws of nature itself: that using their revolutionary “de-extinction” technology, they can “mak[e] extinction a thing of the past.” As a proof of concept, Colossal revealed that they had made 20 edits to a gray wolf embryo’s DNA and, on October 1, 2024, three dire wolf pups were born, the first of their species to walk the earth in over 10,000 years. To many, this is a spark of hope.
These wolf pups (named Romulus, Remus, and Khaleesi) are a massive advancement of modern biotechnology, and with Colossal promising to use this technology to de-extinct animals like wooly mammoths to fill the empty roles and positions (called “niches”) that the extinct animals played in their ecosystem, this could be the start of an environmental revolution. However, others have been more skeptical, calling into question the legitimacy of the wolves, the actual environmental benefits of the experiment, and whether or not the entire program is a nightmare straight out of Jurassic Park.
Argument:
While the science behind it is wildly impressive, Colossal’s dire wolf pups are not at all the end of extinction or even the rebirth of the dire wolf species; they are a marketing ploy Colossal is using to get more investors. These wolf pups are only called dire wolves to appeal to the pop culture significance the species received after the massive success of Game of Thrones (the name “Khaleesi” is even a reference to the series). In reality, these pups are not dire wolves, but gray wolves genetically engineered to look like dire wolves. Just 20 genetic edits cannot change a gray wolf into a dire wolf any more than 20 edits can turn a gorilla into a human.
This is not the only discrepancy in the project either. Wolves have around 20,000 genes in their body, and Colossal only made edits to 14 of them. Colossal has also admitted that only 15 of the 20 edits they made to the gray wolf’s DNA match the actual dire wolf DNA that they based the project on. The base animal that Colossal used, the gray wolf, is not even the closest living relative to the dire wolf – the jackal is – and though Colossal boldly proclaims that the hybrid pups will behave like their dire wolf “ancestors,” there is currently no way of proving how the original dire wolves acted.
And while the dire wolf pups are not going to be released into the wild, using Colossal’s de-extinction project for future environmental work could create a dilemma. Colossal’s advanced biotechnology could easily fill empty ecosystem niches through genetic modification or even de-extinction of recently extinct animals. However, Colossal is focusing on reviving animals that have been extinct for over 10,000 years, even though many ecosystems have already made the necessary adaptations to survive without them. To introduce these “de-extinct” hybrids into a natural environment would be like introducing an invasive species, causing a massive shift in the ecosystem’s structure and potentially causing a lot of death of the native organisms.
Dire Times: Benefits of Gene Editing and Cloning
by Melanie Hobdy
The use of gene editing and cloning may be key tools in reviving extinct organisms and restoring damaged ecosystems. Colossal Biosciences’ recent ‘revival’ of the dire wolf serves as a promising symbol for the future of de-extinction and the potential reintroduction of ecologically significant species.
In addition to the dire wolves, Colossal also has plans to revive the woolly mammoth, the dodo, and the Tasmanian tiger. These species all played key roles within their ecosystems, and their disappearance, largely due to human interference, has contributed heavily to ecological shifts and imbalances. One of the most devastating consequences to the extinction of apex predators has been trophic downgrading, a process where the loss of keystone species leads to an increase in disease, proliferation of invasive species, and food chain collapse.
For example, the extinction of the Tasmanian tiger in 1936 has had far-reaching effects on the Tasmanian devil population. Tasmanian tigers, once at the top of their food chain, were hunted to extinction due to claims falsely accusing them of preying on livestock. Their absence has since left Tasmanian devils, previously maintained by the tiger, experiencing a spread of facial tumor disease that’s driven them to severe endangerment.
As Colossal states, the Tasmanian tiger “helped remove the weak and the sick as well as [maintain] the balance with competitors [,] helping to ensure species diversity.” This is a clear example of how bringing back lost predators may increase biodiversity and improve ecosystem integrity. Aside from reviving long-extinct animals from our favourite television series, cloning is also being used to protect already endangered species such as the red wolf. With over one million species now under the threat of extinction due to human activity, gene editing and cloning may provide a path to redemption for species whose existence was cut short, potentially reversing ecosystem damage and restoring ecological balance where it was lost.
