The enormous dodo bird was endemic to the island of Mauritius, located in the western part of the Indian Ocean (meaning it was a species that lived exclusively on this island).
A True Breakthrough in Ornithology
Researchers promise to bring the extinct species back to life by 2030. Over 300 years ago, dodos were ruthlessly hunted to extinction by humans. However, scientists are determined to resurrect .
After cultivating the primordial germ cells of the pigeon (which are stem cells that develop into sperm or eggs), scientists plan to edit them using dodo DNA. Then, they will transfer these cells into genetically modified chickens.
Following this, will lay , leading to the resurrection of the extinct species. This could happen as soon as the end of this decade, according to the Daily Mail.
Ben Lamm, CEO of Colossal Biosciences, described the latest development as “a significant step forward in the quest to resurrect the extinct dodo species.” Ultimately, Lamm envisions thousands of dodos living in Mauritius, possessing enough genetic diversity to be protected from various diseases.
The first mentions of the dodo (or the Mauritian dodo) come from Dutch sailors who landed on Mauritius in the late 16th century. Over the next hundred years, these birds were decimated by both colonizers and their domesticated animals. The appearance of the dodo became known through illustrations from that era.
The dodo belonged to a group of flightless birds, stood about a meter tall, and weighed between 25 and 50 kg. It is believed to have been a stout, clumsy bird. However, since this species went extinct in the late 1600s, no one knows for sure what the dodo looked like.
The Oxford University Museum of Natural History houses the only known specimen of dodo soft tissue. Scientists reported that the “Oxford dodo” was shot in the back of the head with a shotgun.
The National Museum in Prague holds the upper jaw of a dodo, while the Danish Museum of Natural History has the skull of this bird, from which Colossal Biosciences experts extracted DNA.
According to company representatives, these rare dodo fragments exist as “symbols of extinction caused by human activity.”
Colossal Biosciences also plans to bring back extinct woolly mammoths and Tasmanian tigers.
Since its launch in September 2021, Colossal Biosciences has raised over $555 million in funding. Currently, scientists have successfully resurrected the dire wolf (or terrible wolf), which roamed North America tens of thousands of years ago and has recently gained fame through the series “Game of Thrones.”
The dodo revival project is currently valued at $120 million. Among its notable investors are filmmaker Peter Jackson, golfer Tiger Woods, and football player Tom Brady.
Photo: Openverse