14 Extinct Animals That Could Be Resurrected
The idea of bringing extinct animals back to life is not new, and it has captured the imagination of scientists as well as media outlets. While bringing a species back from extinction used to only be within the realm of utopia, advances in genetics and cloning technology are making this possibility increasingly real. Check out 14 extinct animals people think could still be alive
1. Woolly Mammoth
THE woolly mammoth is perhaps the most high profile de-extinction hopeful. Scientists are hoping to combine mammoth DNA extracted from preserved permafrost with an elephant. The Woolly Mammoth may play a critical role in rejuvenating the tundra environment.
2. Passenger Pigeon
With the global population once in the billions, passenger pigeons would still number many hundreds of millions if not several billion had they survived. You are trying to bring the dodo really back from its own sequence, and expanding with methods that respond to using museum specimens genetic material.
3. Thylacine (Tasmanian Tiger)
The first of these is the thylacine — or Tazmanian tiger (which was declared extinct in the early 20th century). Conservation geneticists are hopeful of in time reversing the extinction by breeding it into thousands and releasing this enigmatic Australian marsupial back to its home range with preserved tissue samples banked for possible future use.
4. Sardinian Pika
The Sardinian pika: a now extinct type of small mammal once found in the mountains of Sardinia. New Zealand is examining the use of ancient DNA to hopefully resurrect this amazingly elusive species re-establishing it in a part at least, of its former range.
5. Woolly Rhinoceros
The woolly rhino lived during the last Ice Age. With the help of ancient DNA research, scientists are actually contemplating cloning this giant animal that could have a great impact in helping rebuild long lost ecosystems.
6. Great Auk
Over many thousands of years, a flightless bird called the great auk lived in hordes on islands in the North Atlantic until it was hunted to extinction or died off because humans destroyed their breeding grounds. But with these preserved specimens, some hope that a genetic resurrection may bring the birds back to take flight as soon.
7. Moa
The moa was a large flightless bird only found i New Zealand which went extinct in the late 17th century. Studying its DNA could make it possible for the scientists to clone this one-of-a-kind species, an event that would have great and positive implications on what is left of New Zealand's ecology.
8. Steller’s Sea Cow
Steller's sea cow Steller's sea cow; a large marine herbivore which vanished in the 18th-century He pointed out that researchers are looking at the DNA and thinking about how they might be able to bring some back in order to re-balance his native marine environs.
9. Sabre-Toothed Cat
The infamous sabre-toothed cat is still another candidate for de-extinction. The frozen finds have given researchers hope that extinct predators like this one might soon roam the earth again, with cloning technology allowing them to be brought back from extinction.
10. Giant Short-Faced Bear
This giant bear species once roamed North America. One idea , with the help of DNA from fossils, some day it maybe possible rebuild this mighty beast in a bid to add its footprint back into prehistoric ecosystems.
11. Diprotodon
Australia was home to Diprotodon, the largest known marsupial. As genetic research into the species continues, these scientists are also looking to revive this giant and piece together what prehistoric Australia would have been like.
12. American Lion
During the Ice Age, North America was home to a huge relative of modern lions called American lion. Combining genetic analysis with recent advances in cloning offers hope from a scientific standpoint that this keystone predator could soon be reintroduced to its former range.
13. Aurochs
The aurochs, a wild ancestor of modern cattle, was once widespread across Europe, Asia, and North Africa. Efforts to resurrect this species involve selective breeding programs that may allow for a modern equivalent of the once-mighty aurochs.
14. Woolly Mammoth-Hybrid
Finally, there is the woolly mammoth-hybrid which could be developed by combining DNA from a wooly-mammoth to that of an Asian elephant. Rendering aid of course to woolly mammoths, revamping long-gone climates and habitats on one hand — with that more useful zoological fosterage being mixed into the mix.
Conclusion
Bringing back extinct species remains mostly theoretical, but research and progress in genetic engineering keep us inspired. But the resurrection of these animals could unlock thrilling scientific opportunities — and force us to confront our own duties with respect to conserving species and preserving balance in nature. In the future, this dream of giant herbivores living freely on Earth again might not be as fanciful as it sounds.
