my latest feature in #CurrentBiology: from #mammoth to #moa the hype and #science around #deExtinction
https://proseandpassion.blogspot.com/2025/08/de-extinction-deconstructed.html #conservation #ecology #extinction #ecosystem #GMorganisms #genome
my features published in #CurrentBiology this year, issue 16: from #mammoth to #moa the hype and #science around #deExtinction
https://proseandpassion.blogspot.com/2025/08/de-extinction-deconstructed.html #conservation #ecology #extinction #ecosystem #GMorganisms #genome
Regisseur Peter Jackson 
will den ausgestorbenen Moa, einen riesigen, flugunfähigen Vogel aus Neuseeland, mithilfe von Gentechnik wiederbeleben! 
Das ambitionierte Projekt sorgt für Diskussionen über Wissenschaft, Ethik & Naturschutz. Mehr dazu 
https://www.n-tv.de/wissen/Peter-Jackson-will-ausgestorbenen-Moa-wiederbeleben-article25898676.html #Moa #PeterJackson #DeExtinction #newz
Amidst the hype and hoo-hah of people claiming they can bring back moas, here's a dose of common sense from Nic Rawlence -- an associate professor in ancient DNA at University of Otago.
"First the dire wolf, now NZ’s giant moa: why real ‘de-extinction’ is unlikely to fly"
Colossal Biosciences plant nach dem "Schattenwolf" nun auch die Rückkehr der ausgestorbenen Moas 
– in Zusammenarbeit mit Māori und Peter Jackson! Ein faszinierendes Projekt für Wissenschaft & Biodiversität. #DeExtinction #Moa #Wissenschaft #newz
Kurzlink: https://heise.de/-10482457
I’m generally a bit skeptical of de-extinction plans, when we have so many wild species on the brink of extinction that need our help. Still, I find myself excited at the prospect of Peter Jackson helping to bring back NZ’s nine species of moa. Peter can spend his money however he likes, and this is *much* better than buying another big yacht or a social media company.
Sabrina Imbler has a good piece at Defector today, on the continuing saga of the dire wolves that never were, and will almost certainly never be.
A startup made a claim that they knew would get headlines, and some science writers and editors jumped in for the clicks rather than doing their jobs and asking some pretty obvious questions.
#DireWolf #DeExtinction #journalism
https://defector.com/colossal-biosciences-cant-have-it-both-ways
The Art of #DeExtinction: Reanimating #Species We’ve Lost
https://atmos.earth/the-art-of-de-extinction-reanimating-species-weve-lost/
"As with the dire wolf, the rhino experiment is being watched by skeptics. They question whether genetically engineering a northern white rhino is more of an exercise in technological hubris than genuine conservation."
Elena Kazamia for Nautilus: https://nautil.us/the-last-of-their-kind-1204387/
„Jurassic Park“ der Wölfe: Mittels Gentechnik soll es erstmals gelungen sein, vor 13.000 Jahren ausgestorbene Schattenwölfe wieder zum Leben zu erwecken. #Schattenwolf #ColossalBiosciences #DeExtinction #Gentechnik
https://www.scinexx.de/news/biowissen/ausgestorbene-woelfe-wieder-zum-leben-erweckt/
No, the dire wolf isn't back. Extinction is forever. What Colossal Biosciences created are genetically modified wolves of the species Canis lupus. It's sad to see the public unashamedly lied to by so many media.
#direwolf #canislupus #wolf #genetics #paleogenetics #ancientdna #dna #cloning #prehistoric #animals #extinction #deextinction #media #colossal #biosciences
https://blogorgonopsid.blogspot.com/2025/04/pravlk-obrovsky-je-zpet-kdepak-jde-jen.html
They are beautiful, but I'm not sure I approve of the validity of the science or the ethics of #deextinction and I hope they don't get lonely: "The Return of the #DireWolf" for TIME by Jeffrey Kluger and Robert Clark https://time.com/7274542/colossal-dire-wolf/
#Deextinction is a BS scam and a distraction from real conservation work. It's the AI of biology. They are genetically modifying animals to superficially resemble extinct species while vaguely gesturing towards sci-fi ideas about finding/reconstructing entire genomes. We are nowhere near this stage, and it's doubtful we ever will. And guess what, that still wouldn't bring anything back, because living things are much more than their DNA on so many levels.
Public service announcement: this is *not* a dire wolf.
It is a genetically modified grey wolf made to resemble an extinct species, so a bullshit company can raise more money for their bullshit projects.
#Deextinction is a scam on so many levels I don't even know where to begin. It will *not* help us save endangered species. Instead, we should spend our money on preserving their habitats *before* they go extinct.
Mäuse mit Mammut-Fell erzeugt. Genveränderung nach Mammutvorbild bringt "Wollhaarmäuse" hervor. #Wollhaarmaus #Mammut #Deextinction #Mammutmaus #Gentechnik #colossal
https://www.scinexx.de/news/biowissen/maeuse-mit-mammut-fell-erzeugt/
Long overdue #introduction .
I'm a #sustainability scientist with a background in #ecology and #evolution working in #Stockholm.
I study the evolution and sustainability of the #Anthropocene and use emerging #infectiousDisease & #agriculturalPests as a lens for understanding how shocks cascade in social-ecological systems.
I'm mesmerised by #birdmigration in both the living and digital worlds. #deExtinction sceptic, but love seeing #mastodon walking this planet again as a source for good.
