Dire Wolves : The ancient dire wolf, an iconic predator of the Ice Age, has captured imaginations for centuries—especially after being thrust into pop culture fame by HBO’s Game of Thrones. Now, a Dallas-based biotech company, Colossal Biosciences, claims it has brought this prehistoric species back to life. But not everyone is convinced.
In a bold announcement on October 1, 2024, Colossal declared that it had successfully achieved a feat long thought to reside solely in the realm of science fiction: de-extinction. According to the company’s press release, three genetically engineered wolf pups—named Romulus, Remus, and Kaleesi—were born through surrogate mothers, marking what they call “the first successful restoration of a once-eradicated species.”
“These pups, with their thick white fur and distinctive appearance, represent a scientific milestone,” the company stated. “Colossal’s innovations in gene editing and conservation have made it possible to revive a species from a population of zero.”
However, the claim has sparked widespread skepticism in the scientific community. Critics argue that what Colossal has actually done is create gray wolves with a few targeted genetic edits—wolves that resemble what we imagine dire wolves might have looked like, but are far from true genetic matches.
The Truth Behind Colossal’s Dire Wolves
Jeremy Austin, Director of the Australian Centre for Ancient DNA, expressed strong doubts. “All they’ve done is genetically engineer a gray wolf that looks how they think a dire wolf looked,” Austin told ScienceAlert. “That’s not de-extinction. That’s marketing.”
Evolutionary biologist Beth Shapiro, who is affiliated with Colossal, has offered a broader interpretation of what it means to resurrect a species. “If it looks like that species, acts like that species, and fills the same ecological role, then you’ve done it,” Shapiro told ABC News. But Austin says such a definition dangerously oversimplifies what a species truly is.
“Species concepts are human classifications, sure,” he said, “but this is like The Emperor’s New Clothes. If enough people believe it’s a dire wolf, does that make it so?”
Geneticist Adam Boyko from Cornell University, who was not involved in the project, echoed the concerns. He noted that dire wolves (Aenocyon dirus) diverged from modern gray wolves (Canis lupus) over 5.7 million years ago and have shown no signs of interbreeding with gray wolves—meaning the two are genetically distinct.
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